The Consequences of Silence
by AccendoAnimus
Summary: A person's heart is a fickle thing. It always demands the illogical thing; the 'wrong' thing. The brain, the rational one, should decide on things. Love through your head so your heart won't get hurt. But love and pain are intertwining identities. You can't fully have one without the other. If you ignore your heart and go with the mind, you will always lose out on what matters.
1. Sleeping Confessions

This is just during the episode where Asura escapes and fights Lord Death. R&R :)

* * *

"Maka!" Soul yells as he sees his meister falls from grabbing onto Asura's robe after he flew from his prison under ground. He reaches her just time and puts her on top of him as her lands on his back, on a crate. _Well that fucking hurt. _He hears her mumble something and he looks at her as her hand falls to her side after being put into the air.

"You are really are incredible." He smiles. They're safe for now. _Jesus, I'm glad she's okay. What they hell would I do without her stupid nagging and her… stupid smile and… yeah. We should get moving. _

"Come on lets go." He looks to Maka but sees that she has fallen unconscious. _Dammit, my back is fucking killing me and I have to carry her!_ He tries to stand but feels too weak to. He looks around for someone.

"Someone please help us! We need help!" He shouts but he knows that it is in vain. He hears explosions around him and knows that no one can hear him, or if they could, they wouldn't come to help. He continues to struggle against his weariness and tries numerous times to stand but continues to fall back down. Eventually he leans against the crate and looks to the sky. And that was when he fell unconscious.

He's first to get back into reality. Her looks around and sees Asura flying off into the distance and sees Lord Death fly back to the castle. _He lost? What the fuck? _A tiny voice brings him back to where he was.

"Soul…Soul?" Maka's head raises slightly but immediately falls back onto his chest.

"I'm here Maka. I got you. Don't move okay. You're hurt." _Thank God she's not too injured._

"How… I was falling… I should be dead. How did I…"

"I pulled you on top of me before impact. Thank God you are so skinny, or you might have hurt me when we landed." He laughs but stops and cringes when he feels the pain in his side. Which does not go unnoticed by Maka.

"What? I hurt you again?" She tries to turn to look at him but falls into his chest, her head near his neck. "I did it again. I'm such a horrible person. I'm so sorry, Soul."

"I said you didn't hurt me, idiot." _She's thinking about the scar again. Dammit! Why does it hurt her so bad?_

"But Soul… I'm so sorry." He begins to feel wetness form on his neck. _She's crying. Daaaaamn! _He just pulls her close and hugs her as she sobs into him. He begins to stroke her hair. He begins to hums her a tune that he had long forgotten he knew. But she continues to cry.

"I'm… always….getting… you… hurt!" She says between sobs. She gains some composure briefly and looks into his eyes, inches from his face, tiny tears still sliding down from her eyes. "I promise, Soul, that we get back, you can ask for a new partner, I wont be mad, I promise. All I do is get you into trouble."

Those words pissed him off. "Dammit, Maka! It isn't your fault! It was my choice! Don't you understand?" He shouts at her and she stops crying completely to listen to him, not moving her head from the crook of his neck, secretly enjoying the warmth from him.

"I will never let anything ever **kill** you, Maka. Never. Not because it's my duty or something. It's because…" He stops. _She can't know. She'll ask for a partner change. She'll hate me. Ill have to move out. She'll never want to see me again! She'll…_

"Because why?" Her breathing calms and she hugs him closer. "Please tell me why you think you should get hurt over me."

"Because…" _She's always been here for me. She's never let me down. She's always forgiving me when I fuck up. Maybe she can forgive this fuck up too. _"It's because if anything happens to you and I could have stopped it, I wouldn't be able to live with myself again. I… I care about you a lot, Maka. More than a partner; more than anything in this world. You're special to me. You make me feel better when I'm upset. You help me study when I need help. You always watch out for me, even when I don't think I need it. You are always thinking about others before yourself. Even though you say you hate your dad, I know you don't. You are incapable of hatred. I didn't dance with you because I was afraid that I might say something stupid. But then when we did dance… it was amazing. I felt invincible, Maka. You make me feel like I can do anything. We've been partners since day one. I would never pick someone else over you… I care about you too much to do that. I… I've been in love with you for as long as I can remember. That's why I won't let anything hurt you. Can't you understand that? Maka?" He pulls away to look at her. She had fallen asleep while he had been talking. _Maybe it's for the best. She wouldn't have heard what I said and she won't get mad. Good. But we should get back to the school before people start thinking we're hurt. And the last thing I need is Black Star seeing me like this. _He had realized that as he was speaking, he had started blushing and smiling like an idiot. _Now isn't the time for this. Maybe one day, I'll tell her again. When we're ready to face something like this. _

He slowly stands up, careful not to wake her. He carries his meister; his companion; his friend; and his love on his back and makes his way to the school. He walks carefully so he doesn't fall and slowly walks so he doesn't hurt himself more. He looks into the sky and hears something. Something that is so beautiful, that he almost always gets butterflies when he hears it. Her voice. And it was saying…

"I love you too, Soul."

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Should i leave this as a one shot, or keep going? Your choice! R&R :)


	2. Friendly Banter

Well, you asked for it! So prepare for a tale of coolness :)

-Im here to enkindle courage.

* * *

He froze. _Did she really just say that? What do I say? So uncool! Think of something romantic…something witty…something cool! _

"Yeah?" _What? Seriously, Soul! So uncool! Did I just say that? I fail as a man. I give my man badge over to…_

"Hmmm." A voice came from right beside his ear and sends shivers down his spine. He turns to look at Maka. _She's sleeping? So did I just mishear a sigh as those words or something? No way. She didn't actually say it. _His heart drops to his stomach as he continues to walk toward the school to drop her off in the med wing. _Despite being the cool guy, I am. I seriously want to crawl up in my bed and mope. But I can't. My meister needs me to stay with her. _

Walking up the steps to the school, he looked around and saw all the destruction surrounding the school and city. _I guess we have more to worry about than my pathetic love life. I hope the med clinic is still freaking open. _He picks up the pace and goes into a slow jog toward the med clinic. "Yo! Someone help me?" He shouts as he enters the clinic and sees numerous people rushing around. He spots a doctor and rushes over to him. He doesn't have to say anything for him to start helping Maka.

"Clear a bed! This girl needs a bed and an IV stat!" He shouts, but to no one. Frustrated he rushes off getting the materials he needs for Maka and leaves Soul beside a bed. He gently lays Maka down on it and grabs a chair to sit on while he waits for the doctor. Ten minutes pass and Soul begins to worry. But as he's about to get up, Spirit walks into the clinic helping Stein walk. Spirit talks to Stein for a minute and Stein nods. Stein then grabs his extra lab coat off the rack of the clinic door and changes into it. Fiddling with the screw in his head, he walks toward Maka and Soul. Spirit looks over to where he's walking and immediately freaks out and runs toward Soul.

"Soul! You bastard! What did you do to my daughter?" Grabbing him by the shirt he looks him in the eyes and growls. "You are supposed to protect her!" Soul glares back. Stein hooks Maka up to an IV and checks her temperature.

"Dammit! I did! I took a 2 story fall on my back for her! It's not my fault she doesn't listen to me and stops being reckless! I protected her the best I could!"

"Well obviously that isn't good enough! My poor, Maka!" He drops Soul and rushes over to her side. _I did my best dammit. _

"Shut… up… He did … his best." Maka whispers. Surprised, they all rush to her side.

"Maka! Thank god. You scared me! What were you thinking, grabbing onto him like that!" Soul shouts at her. Stein glares at him and Soul immediately becomes quiet.

"I had to, Soul. It was my duty." She looks at him and tries her best to smile.

"What's the damage Stein?" Spirit asks.

"Well, it seems she has a few broken ribs, a sprained ankle and wrist, and a slight concussion." Stein states, pumping something into her IV.

"Give her some medicine then, idiot!" Spirits says.

"I just put her onto some pain relief medicine, obviously. But right now we don't have enough materials for me to fix her bones." Stein shoots back. While the two argued, Soul sat back in his chair and looked at Maka.

"Maka, you scared the shit out of me. Don't ever do that again." Soul whispered to her leaning on to her bed.

"Soul, it's my…our job. I had to. Now, how did I get here? The last thing I remember is grabbing onto him." Souls heart sunk. _So she doesn't remember anything. Fuck. This is so uncool. _

"Soul?"

"Oh, right. I caught you as you were falling and we landed—"

"What! What did we land on?"

"Fuzzy pillows, dork."

"Soul!"

"Okay, we landed on some boxes. Don't worry. I cushioned you and your fat ankles." He grins at her, showing his teeth.

"…Oh. I'm so—"

"Shut up, Maka. It's my job to protect you. It happened. Lets get past it."

"But you're always getting hurt because of—"

"I thought I told you to get past it. Geesh, you are stupid sometimes, book worm!" He laughs at her and she glares at him. The name calling and banter passed by so much time that they had failed to notice that most of the people had left. The only ones that were left were people staying over night in the clinic.

"Huh, everyone's gone. When did that happen?" Maka states, looking around.

"Probably while you were busy being wrrrrrrong!" Soul laughs and jumps out of reach before she could hit him.

"You should go get some sleep, Soul. Go home. I'll be okay here." She smiles at him.

"Yeah, but it would be uncool to leave my awesome partner here."

"Soul, go home. Sleep. Then you can come back, okay?" She smiles at him. He frowns and nods.

"You're right. Goodnight, Maka. I'll see you tomorrow." He smiles and walks toward the door.

"Soul! Be safe…promise?" She calls after him.

"I promise. You get better. Promise?"

"I promise." She grins at him and turns over in her bed facing the wall.

Smiling, Soul walks out the door and leaves for home. Avoiding the giant holes in the ground, he starts to think to himself. _She doesn't remember anything. That means she doesn't remember anything I told her! So uncool! It was so hard to tell her and she doesn't remember. That's just awwwwesome. And did she even say it back? Or was that my imagination?_

Unlocking the door, he throws his coat onto the couch and closes the door, locking it behind him. He gets into his rooms and strips down to his boxers and climbs into his bed. Putting his hands behind his head, he looks up at his ceiling. _Well, how am I supposed to sleep without her next door. Damn, this is weak. I'm such a girl. So uncool. _And then he closes his eyes and tries to sleep.

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Any good? Then tell me! Pretty bad? Tell me! Thanks for reading :)


	3. Color

Okay, im SO sorry for how this has taken. Shits been crazy. Baseball took up my whole summer. But i was one of the top batters at Nationals :) and school is pretty hectic. Hey, im taking advanced calculus, advanced english, social & advanced math, you do that & then complain to me. haha Though i will admit i've been reading way too much freaking manga. Seriously, i need to stop. There is something wrong with me! I am a white chick, why am i obsessed with asian-y things? Im not racist or anything. (I hate everyone the same. JUST KIDDING. JOKE. DONT MURDER ME). Anyways, here is the new chapter.

-Im here to enkindle courage

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"MAKA! WAIT UP!" Soul chases after his meister but she continues to elude him. Running faster and faster, he starts to feel a pulling in his chest and his heart beat ringing in his ears, but he has to reach her, **now. **He can't remember why but he knows that he has to. But the faster he runs, the farther she gets. He doesn't remember where he is; just white walls everywhere. _A hospital? Old folks home? What the fuck, Maka! _"STOP!"

"MAKA!" She turns to look at him, her face is tear stained and her clothes are torn. Blood pours from cuts that are across her body. She says nothing and continues to walk away from him. He can tell she's limping, but he can't remember why she is so hurt. Panicking, he picks up the pace; ignoring his bodies warning of getting close to breaking point. Finally he can't run anymore and collapses, screaming her name. She turns to look at him again. Brings her hand up in a little wave and continues on into a bright red light.

"I always thought red was the prettiest color out there, I'm really jealous of your eyes, Soul!" Her voices echoes behind her and surrounds Soul. His heart slows as he embraces her voice; letting it turn and twist his world and he basks in her would-be presence. Slowly, the white world fades into an empty void.

" CrashBangCrashBangCrashBangC rashBangCrash

CRashBAngCRashBAngCRashBAngC RashBAng

CRAShBANgCRAShBANgCRAShBANgC RAShBANg

CRASSSSHHHBAAAAAAAAANNNNGGGC RASSSSHHHBAAAAAAAAANNNNGGGCR ASSSSHHHBAAAAAAAAANNNNGGG"

_GOD DAMN CONSTRUCTION! HOW AM I I SUPPOSED TO SLEEP WITH ALL THAT NOISE!?_

"BAAH!" Sitting slightly up in his bed, he looks out of his window. It was still dark but people are outside, making a lot of the blankets covering him off, Soul grumbles as he gets out of bed, clad only in his boxers. Obviously not remembering the dream he had, he leaves his room. Every since the attack on the city, construction continues day and night. People volunteer to help get everything back and running, but progress is slow; slow enough to piss off at least one weapon.

"Like seriously...freaking headphones don't even cover the noise...stupid holes...death making them work...hungry", mumbles Soul as he makes his way to his fridge for a 'midnight' snack. Yawning, he opens the fridge door and leans down to look in. However, his view is blocked by his shaggy white mop. Growing ever more frustrated, he brushes it out of his eyes, only to have it fall back in. "GAH!" Throwing his hands to his face, he continues to push his hair upward with his palms until they curve backward. Slightly satisfied, he looks downward toward his fridge. Like all the times before, he sees a block of moldy cheese, a pickle jar with no pickles, and a long expired carton of chocolate milk. Not being the most accomplished grocery shopper, Soul only bought the things he would eat right away and threw foresight to the wind.

"Maka should come home and cook for me...At least shop for me." _I mean, they've kept her there waaay too long. It's been like 2 weeks! I'm starving to death! And i miss bugging and arguing with her! _Soul won't admit to anyone, including himself (especially himself), that he, in fact, just misses being around Maka. _She's basically all healed anyway! All she would do here is lay in bed anyway... It's not much different from staying there, and maybe she would stop complaining about how shitty the beds are if she came home. But she does have a point though. I've fallen on concrete softer than that, literally. Man, I'm having conversations with myself in my head. I must be starving. _Becoming even more frustrated his hunger, Soul slams the door of his fridge. Thowing open the pantry; just a little too hard, the glass door cracks a little. Not caring at the moment, he looks inside to find a box of crackers, olive oil and an empty container of peanut butter. Rage quitting, he sits on the floor and pulls his knees up to his chest, sighing. _Fooooooooooooooooooooooood! _

Glancing over to the clock, Soul sees that his non-present 'midnight' snack, is actually non-present 'early morning' snack. _6:25? Fuck. Way too early to be up on a Saturday. But I defiantly won't fall asleep in my room! The couch...? No, its right by my room & the god-damn-half-naked-cat-thing is sleeping there. WHY DOES SHE LIVE HERE?! Hmm, Maka's bedroom is on the opposite side of construction this morning...and I bet her bed is comfy... Eh. She'll never know. _

Pulling himself up from the floor, Soul makes his way to Maka's room and opens her door. The faint smell of her perfume lingers in the air that hasn't kissed her skin for 2 weeks. He can imagine her sleeping in her bed, hair thrown across her pillow as she with her cute-normal, completely normal and ugly snore! Probably lots of drooling too. Taking a deep breath, he continues on his way to her king sized bed and lies down. Smiling contently to himself that he had thought of 'such a freaking _awwwwwesome_ idea', he begins basks in his new noise free environment. _Hell yes. This'll be my room till Maka gets back! Hopefully she won't realize that i slept her. Talk about awkward. _Glancing at the roof, he gets the nagging feeling that he's forgotten something important. _I can do homework tomorrow, I borrowed Black*Star's video, Kid has my new borderlands video game, I need to clean the bathroom...What the hell did i forget? Door is locked, fridge is closed..._Continually listing things off in his mind, Soul finds himself slowly falling into a dreamless slumber.

At first, he notices is the pressure on his chest, next came the warmth & then a small patch of wetness. Groggily, he opens his eyes and was _extremely surprised to find a blond head laying on his chest. _

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_Kay! Ill try not to take so long :)  
_


	4. Dangerous Thoughts

__Heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeey. So please dont murder me. Shit's been crazy this semester. I've had all diploma courses and such. I have 6 exams worth 50% of my mark this month, so i probably wont update again until after. But then i get the semester off! So lots of updates! Yay! Love you peoples 3

-Im here to enkindle courage.

* * *

_Okay, so here's what I know. I'm sleeping in Maka's bed. With Maka. Kind of. She's hugging me and is sleeping on my chest… and drooling. I'm also basically almost naked. Maka is swearing a tank top and from the feel, she's wearing jeans. And if I move, she will wake up. Here's what I don't know. Maka came in here and slept in here. Did she see me? Was she so tired she doesn't care? We have had to share sleeping areas before on missions, but we were always fully clothed and not touching…Did she not want to wake me, so she slept beside me, but then she ended up like this? Okay, now what the balls do I do? Maybe I could say that Blair slept walked into my room and freaked me out and I came in here, not remembering she was coming home. This is true. I can't fucking believe I forgot she came back today. I thought it was tomorrow. We'll technically; it was 'yesterday' kinda when I woke up originally. _He worriedly glanced down at the blonde. He was hoping she wouldn't feel his heart beat speeding or his slight nervousness in the air. He hoped she would move and he could escape. But there was a small, tiny part of his man pride that was glowing. Telling him and reminding him that he really didn't cause this. And that it was awesome this was happening. But Soul was too nervous to embrace that part of it.

Slowly, but surely, Maka stirred. She seemed unaware at where she was at first. Soul feigned sleep while she groggily rubbed her eyes. She looked around and relaxed when she realized she was in her room. Turning to flop back on her pillow, her head collided with something hard. She groaned and heard a groan match her own. She opened to see an irritated Soul running his head and muttering. She glances down to what appears to be a _very _naked soul. Quickly glancing down at her clothes, she sighs in relief to see she is fully clothed.

"Why are you in my room, Soul?" She said in the steadiest voice she could muster.

"…Forgot you were coming home. The construction was way too loud by my window. You're room seemed to be quieter." He answers, not looking at her.

"You thought by going across the hall that it would be quieter?"

"It was like 4am, Maka. Of course I thought that. I fell asleep. Besides, how didn't you see me when you came in? Wanted to cuddle me that bad?" He flashed her a tooth grin as he teased her. She slaps his arm laughing and slightly blushing.

"Shut up, Soul. It was still dark when I got home. I guess I didn't see you."

"Why did they discharge you so early?"

"Because I was going batty in there… and I was driving them crazy from my whining." She laughs again.

"Yeah, you do whine a lot." Soul says, fake agreeing with her. She laughs again and climbs out of bed.

"Breakfast?"

"Funny story. There is no food in the fridge…I may or may not know how to shop for groceries. I ate out almost every night." He said lying down again in her bed.

"We could go out?"

"Well, are you able? Are you still a major cripple?" She blushed again and shifted on her feel. Teasing her and seeing her blush was something Soul enjoyed, even though he wouldn't admit it to anyone.

"Uh…well…" She stammered, not knowing how to answer. She could not walk for long, because her left knee would start to buckle.

"How about we take my bike? Then you won't have to walk. And if we do, and you get tired, piggy back?"

"I'm too heavy for you to carry soul!"

"Maka, I carried you across down after I fell on my back from a few floors up. I think I can handle it." He laughs and gets up. He walks past her. He doesn't want to see her face wince as she is reminded of that night. He forgot that mentioning hurt her. "Uh, I mean. I've carried you plenty of times. You're not fat. You're perfect the way you are, Maka." He says the last sentence without thinking and blushes. Running his hand through his head, he uses the other to awkwardly pat her shoulder and leaves to go and shower.

She nods while looking down. She doesn't want him to see her blush as he walked by her. She walks to her mirror and looks into it. She sees that she has lost some of her muscle mass from lying in a bed for weeks with rarely any movement. Her hair had become a little longer since the last time she had really seen her appearance. She look begins to rummage through her closet to find something to wear.

Soul was in desperate need of a cold shower while he was left alone to his thoughts. All he could think about was how Maka had been laying on his with her chest pressed up against his. He had only been in his underwear while she was in a tight tank top. He knew where these thoughts were leading, but knew that if he continued he would be in an…uncomfortable situation in a few seconds. Running the water on the coldest he could handle, Soul got in and shut his eyes letting the water wash away his thoughts about Maka. _This is wrong. Why am I thinking about her like this?_ Then it slapped him in the face of his naïve mind. _I'm a hormone driven male teenager. Of course I'm going to think about any female like that. Right? Yeah. Just because it's Maka doesn't make it any different. _

Slightly content with his answer, Soul finished his shower and dried his hair. When he went to change however, he realized that he was standing on the only piece of clothing he had in the bathroom. And now it was soaking wet. All he had now was a tiny towel that he had used to dry his hair. Maka would be in her room and his quick trip should not be interrupted if he was fast as hell. Wrapping the tiny towel around his lower self, he stole into the hallway as quietly as he could.

Deciding to put on some make up for her outing, she waiting outside the door for Soul to finish up. She heard the door start to open and stood a little out of the way so he could get by her. However, in such a rush to get to his room. Soul basically ran straight into the unprepared Maka. Tumbling backward, she grabbed onto Soul and accidently took her down her. A few moments later, Soul finds himself straddling the girl below him with the towel no longer around his waist. Not moving for a few moment, Soul's mind goes blank. Suddenly seeing Maka's tomato red face and felt his own matching her, Soul quickly gets off and grabs his towel before continuing on his way to his bedroom. Maka lay frozen on the floor processing exactly what just had happened to her. She clearly remembers how close their faces had been. It seemed to be a hair away. She remembers getting lost in his eyes. Then she remembers him frantically getting off of her and fleeing.

_Soul just was on top of me naked. And I saw everything… _Maka's forces her mind to go blank as she goes into the bathroom to put on her make up. She knew thoughts like that were dangerous and she may do something she regrets. She couldn't let her teenage hormones get their way with her. She was surprised at how hard it became to make her eyeliner straight. She blamed the brush, but secretly knew it was from her slight shaking.

Soul slunk down on to his ass against his door. _Jesus fuck! What the hell was she standing there for. Oh my god. She saw me naked! And I almost kissed her in that position! I almost fucked everything up! Does she still want to go out? Or can she let me die in here in a ball? _Soul knew that Maka would pretend that nothing happened; nothing would change for her. But Soul knew that eventually his emotions would take hold of him sooner or later. He just needed to force them away right now, get changed and casually talk to Maka. It was the only way that things would be okay again. Things would stay the same. They would stay the same. Their relationship would stay the same.

_Do I really want to stay the same?_

* * *

So im sorry for people dont like how I've made this a more mature senerio. I'm sorry but thats the way I want to take this. I mean seriously, two teenagers with romance living together? With no parents? Come on guys. We arent all that innocent. ;)

Please review! Do you like this turn? or would it have been better the way it was, innocent and sweet?


	5. A Not So Typical Maka

_So i managed to get this chapter done in the time where i should have been studying but oh well. The reviews really made me want to get back into writing this story. Also, I'm unsure of how to deal with the plot line involving the cannon. Since its too long and not finished, i will probably make a different one. Also, if you have any suggestions on how to do this, let me know in a review or an inbox! You will get basic credit for the idea :)  
_

_-I'm here to enkindle courage :)  
_

* * *

_Surprisingly, breakfast wasn't too bad. Thank goodness. _Maka walked beside Soul laughing as he continued to try to get something out of his teeth. Everything seemed to be back to normal; before Italy despite this morning. They just had pretended nothing happened and went about their morning. Deciding that they just wanted to watch movies, they headed home. Maka had to walk slowly and much to Soul's dismay, she insisted she would walk at that pace and yelled at Soul when he tried to pick her up to go faster. But to her surprised, he never rushed ahead and left her. Even though he made fun of her slow walking, he kept his pace beside her. As he was helping her onto his bike, she accidently fell and landed in his arms. There seemed to be a pause that was a bit too long. It seemed to linger.

"Damn, Maka, I knew you were slow but clumsy too?" He laughed but didn't remove her from his arms.

Turning her head to look at him she laughed and pushed his arm a little. "How about helping the gimp instead of mocking her? Geesh." She took a break and tried to get onto the bike. Not trying very hard, she fell straight back into his chest. Laughing, he picked her up and put her on the bike. Slightly wary she would fall again, he stood for a second and braced. Fortunately, she didn't fall again. Getting on to his bike, he looked back.

"You going to be able to hold on strong enough? Try, so I know."

"I should be." Feeling tired, she hugged him but did not hug hard enough to satisfy him. Sighing, he looked at her.

"Maka… you can't sit there if you're going to fall."

"But how are we going to get home? We're half way across the city." Thinking for a moment, Soul gets an idea. He gets off the bike, pushes Maka forward and sits behind her.

"Lean into me and move your feet here. Let me see something." _Steering seems fine and I have my feet where they should be. This should be fine. _Soul wouldn't let himself think about the feeling of back in his chest or how his arms wrapped around her to hold onto the handle bars. He started the engine and took off. Startle, Maka grabs onto Soul's thighs, worried she would fall. But with every turn, Soul's arm kept her up and balanced. Relaxing her head back against him she closed her eyes.

Slowly fading into consciousness, Maka finds herself laying on something soft. Peeking her eyes open, she sees that she's in her living room. She had the back of her head on Soul's lap with his hand under her head to give her a pillow while he was stretched out sleeping with his head back against the couch and draped his other arm over her body. They had been in this position so many times that Maka did not even think twice about the situation. She was comfortable but she wanted to call Tsubaki to ask about everything at school. Despite Soul putting on a brave face, he was injured just as bad as Maka. She knew this, even if he managed to hide it well. He had been excused from class until she got out of the hospital. _I wonder how __Crona is doing. I haven't seen him since he came to see me in the hospital a few days ago… I must be so behind in homework…We forgot to get groceries. Maybe Tsubaki will bring some if I tell her I'm too weak to go out and then she and Black*Star can come over and hang out…We could order a pizza… _Sighing, Maka knew she had to get up. Slowly, as to not wake Soul, she lifted her head and removed his arm that lying across her chest. After having a minor celebration for successfully evading the sleeping Soul, Maka walks over to the phone and calls up Tsubaki asking her to come over.

After putting the phone down, Maka notices Soul moving. She sees the pained look in his face and him gripping into the couch. He began to thrash about. Knowing he was having a nightmare, Maka threw herself in front of him and grabbed his shoulders and shook him lightly. Sitting on her knees, she pulled him into a sitting position.

"Soul. Wake up. It's okay." She shook him more forcibly and he woke. Unaware of his surroundings, he looked around scared and confused. Finally letting his eyes rest on Maka, he felt the panic vanish. He let himself fall forward and rest his head into the crook of her neck. She wrapped her right arm around his neck and rubbed his back with her left. Releasing a breath she did not know she was holding, Maka calmed her heart. She felt him grab her and pull her into a hug.

"Thank you" _What a relief, it was just a dream. Maka didn't actually die. These dreams are so uncool._

She pulled back and sat down on her legs again. Glancing up into his eyes, she smiled. "For what, Soul?"

_For everything you've given me, including something to actually look forward to._ "For being the coolest partner ever, obviously." He laughs and leans back into the couch.

"Well, you're welcome. Anyways, Black*Star and Tsubaki are coming over in an hour or so. So if you have to clean your room for you guys to play video games and stuff, do that now."

"Oh cool, I was gunna call Black*Star over. How do you always know what I'm going to do?" Pausing for a moment, Soul jumps up. "I know, you're book-worm-ness gives you psychic abilities!" Laughing, he slightly braced himself for a Maka-chop. But it never came; he looked down at her to find her laughing with him. Slightly flustered at how adorable he found her laugh, he walked to his room to clean it.

Picking herself up off the floor, Maka stopped laughing. She was surprised that she had laughed at the joke instead of hitting him. But deep down, she seemed to know that she did not want Soul to get hurt; even if it was by her hand.

Tiding up the apartment wasn't much work, considering Soul usually spent most of his time in his room and she had been gone for a few weeks. Humming to herself, she started dusting. However, like the typical Maka, she found a book she was reading before and began reading again in her room.

An hour passed in the blink of an eye and soon visitors appeared at Maka and Soul's door. Not hearing the knocking, Maka continued reading. Soul, knowing what she was doing, walked over to the door and let in the visitors. Opening the door a bit, he saw Black*Star's over excited face and a horde of people behind him. Looking to Tsubaki for an explanation, she smiled apologetically and lifted up a few bags of alcohol.

Shrugging, Soul let everyone in. There must have been almost 50 packed into their apartment. Soul and Black*Star trotted to Soul's room to retrieve his speaker and music player. Eventually everyone were dancing, talking or playing beer bong in the kitchen. Realizing Maka was still in her room, he went to get her. Thinking she would be reading, he opened the door without knocking. Surprisingly, Maka wasn't reading. Instead she facing away from him and was braless with the bottom of a black dress just about to go over her bum. Being quiet as possible, Soul closed the door, knocked and entered again. Maka turned to him.

There were no words running through Soul's mind as his eyes swept over Maka in her tight black dress. It hugged her in all the right places and magnified the beauty that was already there. Watching him look at her up and down, Maka let a deep blush set in and put her hand on her him.

"En- Enjoying the view, perv?" She laughed as Soul seemed to come back into awareness and shake him head.

"I just couldn't believe your flat-chest filled in that dress is all." He muttered as he turned away. Realizing he was embarrassed, Maka followed after him and grabbed him hand. Leading him to the alcohol table, Soul lifted an eyebrow and looked at her.

"I've basically be eating paste and sleeping on cardboard for two weeks, I think it's okay if I lose it for the night. Right?"

Grinning with his teeth, Soul grabbed the tequila bottle and poured them two shots. Giving her one, he lifted his and tapped her glass and downed the drink. Feeling it burn down his throat seemed to wake him up.

"Bet I can drink 5 shots faster than you, bookworm." He smirked as he poured out ten shots.

"Oh you're on, perv." She smirked as she downed her first one. Soul ended up winning and threw his arms into the air.

"Thank you, Soul Eater Evans everyone, I'll be here till Thursday!" He said talking to no one. Someone mistakenly thought he was asking for a high five and gave him one. Maka finished pouting to laugh at his surprised face from the high five.

Laughing, she grabbed his hand and dragged him into the dancing crowd. "I bet I can dance longer than you can, Evans."

Feeling the alcohol starting to kick in, Soul agreed. "Wouldn't be cool if I lost, right? So you're on."

And the feeling of their bodies rubbing up against other people and each other as the heat continued to elevate in the room was really the last thing either of them remembered when they woke up the next morning. But they could both use an explanation as to how they woke up.

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Thanks for reading and the more reviews i get, the more often i update! If you have any suggestions on how to deal with the cannon, lemme know! Bye! :)


	6. Other People

__So i lied i guess. i do have time between diploma's to write this. Love yoou peoples :3

-I'm here to enkindle courage.

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_This is the second time this week that I've woken up lying on Soul. Why is he in my room again? Not that I really mind, I guess. He's a good bed warmer. Man, I've got a seriously splitting headache. What the hell came over me last night? I actually wanted to party and not read… Soul's personality must be rubbing off on me. _Nuzzling herself farther into the chest providing comfort, Maka felt relaxed and peaceful in the arms of Soul.

_Soul may be a goofball, but he's really always there for me. Mind, everyone is. But when Soul is, it feels special. He's the only guy ever to really show any form of interest in me. I mean, girls are always asking him to switch partners, but he just waves them off. I wonder what's so great about me. I mean, Liz is totally more suited to him. She knows music and whenever they're together, Soul seems to always have a great time._ Suddenly feeling self-conscious, Maka shakes her head. _Liz is beautiful compared to me; she's perfect_.

_If Kid wasn't so obsessed with her and Patty staying together all the time in case he gets into a fight, I'm sure they would end hanging out much more. I wonder how Kid enjoyed the party last night. They came late I think. He seemed to be worried about something. Did I end up going to talk to him? I hope I did. He's too great of a guy to be depressed like that. I don't even remember him freaking out about symmetry at all. _

Maka smiles to herself as she remembers times when Kid had freaked out because something had been out of place. It had been weird at first, but slowly she got used to it. It doesn't feel like a normal day if Kid doesn't have a freak out. _Goofy guy. I bet he thinks he's perfectly normal to care about symmetry and we're the weird ones. Dumb ass. But I hope he feels better. He's always taking care of me when we're fighting, the least I can do is take care of him when he's depressed. He means a lot to me. He probably saved my life more times than anyone. Maybe I'll pay a visit later and we can study. Studying would be a great way for him to open up to me. We always have such deep talks when we're supposed to be studying. We haven't been to the coffee shop were we study in a long time. I miss their cappuccinos and how Kid freaks out at their symbol for not being symmetrical._ Smiling, Maka giggled. _What a goofball. He's always making a scene. I hope he's okay.__  
_

_ I wonder if everyone is still out in the living room. Patty got pretty wasted really quick and so did Black*Star. Maybe they just crashed on the couches after everyone left. Maybe I could make them breakfast. _A splitting headache reminded her of her hangover. _Or I could lay here for the rest of the day and not move every again. Besides, I'm comfy right now. Soul's chest is a lot harder than normal though, I may need a pillow. _

She ran her fingers over his chest, feeling him slightly tense at the contact. Smiling with her eyes closed, Maka traced over his abs and felt him tense at the touch. _I didn't know Soul was ticklish. I guess I've never tickled him before. _Laying her palm on his chest, Maka couldn't help but blush. _He's really more built than I assumed. I never noticed how fit he was. And he must have a strict workout, he's abs are all identical. I guess he works every part the same. I've never seen him work out though. When does he do it? But it feels nice. He is really quite attractive._

Beginning to feel her body start to become aware of how handsome she found him, Maka shook her head again. _Can't let those thoughts get into my head. He's my partner. Anything like that could ruin our friend ship. I should get up and go make breakfast. _

Opening her eyes, Maka glanced at the bare chest she was lying on and expecting to see the scar that haunted her most nights. When she didn't see it, she sat up in a rush and looked at the face hidden by her pillow. Cautiously, she pulled the pillow off the face.

"Something wrong, Maka?"

_That is definitely not Soul._

_So not cool. Headaches are bad enough; hangovers are the worst. I drank way too fucking much last night. Jesus fuck. Fuck. This cannot get any worse. _Soul became aware of someone lying on his chest. _Or maybe not. _Feeling a small patch of drool on his chest, Soul can't help but smile at the thought of Maka curled up on him. _Idiot. _He wrapped his arms around the sleeping figure. She shifted in her sleep. _Again, Maka? And this time in my room? What, thought it was your room. Geesh, you had way too much to drink. She even smells differently than normal. Maka usually smells like vanilla and strawberry. Now she smells like vodka and tequila. What a goof. Since when did she become the party animal of the two of us. _

Soul opened his eyes and looked at the ceiling. _Man, even my eyes hurt. What the heck did we do last night? I bet the living room is a mess and all of the groceries Tsubaki brought over are eaten. Looks like we're going to have to go shopping. Fuck, so uncool. A cool guy like me shouldn't be going grocery shopping. _Slowly, Soul felt his memory start to become clearer.

_Wait, I think when Black*Star called Kid and the girls he asked them to bring food. Maybe we aren't all out. Kid's always doing shit like that. He's the dad of our group. He always makes sure that everyone's fed. Haha, what a loser. He's just like Maka. She's like the Mom, I guess. She does do my laundry….and cook…and clean and stuff. Patty said that Kid does all of that at his house too. Something about the maid being a retard who can't tell what's symmetrical and what isn't. He's totally that male version of Maka. I mean, they even share books and studying together. So boring. I'm surprised Kid and her haven't run away together on a mission to read every book on earth. So uncool. At least that leather jacket Maka and I got him makes him look cooler.  
_

_Speaking of running away, Liz brought a sick record of the Run Aways last night. It was totally awesome. I'm so glad I finally have someone to talk to about music. Maka tries too hard and Black*Star only likes dub step. Liz is cool though. I'm surprised how much she knows. Even about Jazz. Usually girls like pop music and stuff like that. It's cool to meet a chick who actually listens to all sort of music. She even knows how to freaking read music sheets. I didn't think anybody else in Death City could do that. So cool. She lived on the street though. How did she learn? She was telling me that Kid had a giant music room. Maybe she learned from there. I wonder if she'd take me to see._

_ Hmm, I may have to bribe her with something though. Money? Nah, she has enough from Kid? She did say she wanted to hear me play the piano… it might be worth it. But Maka would kill me. I haven't played for her since we became partners. I can't even believe she stuck with me even after she heard that song. Crazy girl. I seriously do have the coolest partner ever. Besides, my arms wrapped around her slim waist and her boobs lying on my chest really help her case right now. Since when did Maka feel this…sexy? Seriously, her waist feels so slim right now. _

Feeling that certain part of his body start to listen to his mind, Soul moved his train of thought toward different things. _Man, I have homework to do today. Maybe Stein will let me off the hook. Or maybe I could get someone to help me. Kid is probably going to help Maka. And when he explains shit that fast, I don't understand. Maybe Tsubaki could help me? Ah shit. She's probably helping Black*Star. Patty probably just drew a giraffe. Maybe Liz has her shit together…but I doubt it. All she seems to do is take care of her appearance. Though she does take good care of it…_

Feeling the head on his stir, Soul looked down see a blonde head. _Did Maka dye her hair? Why does it look different… Holy Fuck. _ Freezing, Soul racked his mind to determine what had happened last night to have him lying in bed with her like this. The person lying on his chest had definitely not been Maka.

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DUN DUN DUUUN! Stay tuned for the next chapter of this series! :) Review !

Bye boys.


	7. Right in the feels!

Kay, I need you guys to stick the story out. You may not like the pairings right now, but it'll be worth it :)

-I'm here to enkindle courage.

* * *

Honestly, she really had no idea how to reply. First, because she was stunned that he was with her. Second, she wasn't even awkward with him being there. Thirdly, she didn't know why she was in his clothes. Basically, she was confused.

"Uh, no. I just have a really bad headache. I don't really remember much of the night." She flushed a bright pink and turned from his face. _I can't remember much! Oh, death. _

Feeling her bed-buddy shift uncomfortably from her leaning on his chest with her hand, Maka removed her hand and lay back down. _Why don't I feel awkward or nervous? He's freaking shirtless! _Ignoring her mind, Maka propped herself up onto her elbow and looked into the amber eyes staring at her.

"You don't remember how this happened then?" Kid turned a bright pink and broke eye contact with her. "Well, this looks really bad. But I swear I did not take advantage of you or anything. I promise. I would never do that. Uh, well I guess you probably want to know how this happened. Do you remember coming to talk to me last night?" Maka nodded, vaguely aware of it. "Well, it got really noisy out there, so we came in here to talk. We started to get sleepy, so I said I would sleep on your floor, but then you said I was the guest and should sleep on the bed. We compromised instead. And the reason I'm shirtless is because earlier when we were talking you spilt your drink all over yourself, which is why you are in my shirt. So yeah…" He turned bright red as he was explaining himself. "I'm sure you'll remember by the end of the day." He smiled at her, which caused her to blush.

_Why didn't I just change shirts? We're in my room. _Maka, scratched her stomach only to find that she wasn't wearing **anything** underneath Kid's white shirt. _Did I change infront of him? Do I bring it up? That could get awkward. And I'll probably remember later. _

"So what did we talk about exactly?" Maka questioned, curiously.

"Well, you were first determined to find out why I was upset."

"And why were you?"

"Do you have to have this conversation again?" An exasperated Kid said.

"Hey, you're in my bed, half naked. I deserve some answers." Maka teased. _Man, thank god we are such good friends. If I woke up to find myself in bed with Black*Star, things would have turned super awkward really fast. I feel really calm talking to Kid like this. _Maka found it hard to turn her eyes away from the amber ones that were consuming her.

Flipping onto his back, Kid threw his arm over his eyes. "I was depressed because my father wants to send me away on a mission for three months."

"Why is that so bad? You've gone on missions before for around that time." Maka said slightly confused. She saw him hesitate and mutter to himself.

"…Uh. Because…man, much easier with liquid courage. Can we not talk about this right now? It was hard the first time and I'm sure you'll remember it. If you don't, then I'll tell you again. Deal?" He looked over to Maka and smiled. Maka blushed slightly and felt her stomach flutter.

"Yeah, that's fair. But did I make you feel better?" Maka asked, hoping the answer was yes. Kid looked at her and smiled slightly.

"How could I not feel happy when the hilariously drunk Maka was with me?" He teased and laughed as she lightly punched his arm and laughed with him. Flipping onto her bed to stare at the ceiling, Maka smiled. _I'm really glad I have someone like Kid in my life. _

Mirroring her body, Kid did that same. He looked at the window. "Man, it must still be like 7ish. It's still dark out. We only got three hours of sleep tonight. Wanna go back to sleep?" Suddenly realizing what he said, Kid turned red and stammered. "Uh, I mean. I can sleep on the floor and stuff."

Maka laughed at the flustered reaper. "Kid, if I'm comfortable with you here right now, then sleeping would be fine. Also, how did we share one pillow last night." Glancing away uncomfortable, Kid didn't meet her gaze.

"Well, you told me to use the pillow. But uh, I felt bad. But then you kinda just slept on my chest." Turning bright red, Maka mumbled an apology for doing that. Kid just laughed. "No, I thought you would be mad for letting you do it. But it's fine. You seemed comfortable and I sleep on my back anyway." Both seemed unsure what to do next. Kid was still on his back, lying on the only pillow. Both seemed uncomfortable at the newest predicament they were in. Trying to ease tension Kid said, " If you promise not to drool on me again, you can sleep on me." He laughed as Maka poked his side.

"I don't drool!"

"The wet patch on my chest says something else, Miss Maka." He grinned at her, enjoying teasing her.

"Shut up, Kid. Or I'll Maka Chop you!" She said as she continued to poke his sides. Being ticklish, Kid's hand flew to her wrist to have her stop. He pulled her down so she was face first on his bare chest.

"Haha, okay, okay." He laughed as her condescendingly patted her head. "Go to sleep, cranky pants."

"Why do you have to pick on me?" Maka fake pouted up at him.

"Because you're ador—hilarious when you laugh." He tried to get her away from the word he almost said. "Now, sleep. I'm still tired." Kid kept his hand on her head and seemed to subconsciously start playing with her hair. Maka, who loves the feeling of head massages, even little ones, calmed down and slowly fell asleep again. _Thanks for being such a good guy, Kid. _

Kid looked down with a smile on his face. _It only going to last a few more hours, I need to enjoy this while I can. _

In Soul's room however, things went much differently.

"Uh, Liz? Is that you? Why are you in here?" Soul tested the waters, to make sure not to insult her.

"What do you mean? You invited me in here to listen to music… and stuff" Liz groaned and grabbed her head; she laid back down on Soul's stomach. She kissed his chest and sighed.

Soul, still not remembering a thing, froze at the feel of her kiss. "Uh Liz, I don't remember anything from last night at all."

Quickly getting her head off of him, she turned and looked at him wide eyed. "Actually?" She raised her eyebrow, wondering if this was his way of getting out of what he did.

"Yeah…what happened?" Soul said, hoping that the answer was an innocent one.

"Well, after Maka ditched you for a dreary Kid, you came over to me and danced with me. We played beer bong and stuff. We had a bunch of fun. Eventually everyone was leaving but we were still hyper, so you asked me if I wanted to go listen to records until we were tired. We ended up talking and we eventually got to the whole "Truth or Dare" game. Yeah, we were bored. It was my idea though, so don't worry cool guy. OH SHIT." Liz jumped up and ran to Soul's closet. Pulling out a bag, Liz giggled. After untying the bag, Liz pulled out an extremely cranky looking Blaire. Blaire, in cat form looked extremely pissed off and scratched Liz, who dropped her and grabbed her freshly cut wrist. Blaire immediately transformed into a naked woman and jumped at Soul.

"SOUL! How could you trick me into a bag like that! You know I can't get out of those!" She jumped on him and a nose bleed exploded from Soul. Liz, who was slightly startled at the naked woman, casually picked up and threw her out of the room, as if Blaire weighted less than a feather.

Soul, braced for an impact that never came. Glancing at Liz, she was retrieving Kleenex for his nose. She walked over and dabbed him nose. _She isn't going to hit me? What the hell? Maka always hits me when she sees Blaire naked and on top of me. And since when was Liz that strong?!_

"Boys… getting nose bleeds over the smallest things." She dabbed his face and wiped the wall down the best she could. Soul grabbed a bandage that he kept in his night stand and had Liz give him her wrist. Without even thinking, Soul bent down, licked her wound and applied the bandage. Liz, slightly startled that he licked her glanced at him with a weird face. Soul finally realised what he did and blushed.

"Uh, my mom used to do that when I would get a cut. Something about saliva disinfecting it when you don't have alcohol to do that."

"Oh, well that's different. So uncool, Soul. You seriously are a big softie." She teased him.

"Shut up, Liz." He laughed with her and rubbed the back of his neck, still getting over the embarrassment.

Liz grabbed all of the bloodied Kleenex and the wrapper for the bandage and walked over to his trash to through it away. On her way back, she began to feel dizzy. Aiming to put her hand to the wall to avoid falling from her hangover inducted dizziness; Liz missed and fell back on top of Soul. Both blushing, she got up and sat at the edge of his bed. Soul grabbed her arm and pulled her around. He was silent for a while but then finally spoke in a hushed whisper.

"What happened last night, Liz?"

She seemed to hesitate at first, but knowing he would remember sooner or later, she told him. "You talked about how Maka was too good for Kid and stuff. You seemed really jealous. But then… uh. You said something like 'Well, if she can have someone, so can i.' Then you may have pushed me into the wall and uh…yeah." She was blushing furiously for admitting to herself that she let him use her to vent his jealousy for Maka. _But it felt so right to me. Why would I stop a handsome guy from kissing me? _

Dropping her arm, Soul sat back to absorb everything that he was told. _Maka went away with Kid? Why would she do that? _Feeling the jealousy bubble back up again, Soul grabbed Liz's arm and put her back to the way they had woken up. Liz, unsure of what was happening waited for him to talk.

"It's still really early. Let's just go back to bed." _This is so uncool. Maka and I weren't dating or anything. So I guess she can fucking sleep with whoever she wants. But whatever. Cool guys don't freak out about chicks. _But Soul knew he was lying to himself. He knew he loved her, but the sting of her changing her mind about him stung deeper than any cut you could have. _Whatever, Liz obviously likes me. She's hot too. And she has a good taste in music. I'm sure we have the same amount or more things in common that Maka and I do. Whatever, that fucking bookworm can be with that douche. I don't care anymore._ Soul felt his heart harden at the thought of Maka with Kid. He shook his head, getting rid of the image. _ I can probably get laid faster with Liz anyway. And that's all that matters._ _Maka would be all worried about it being special and shit. It's just sex. At 17 we really shouldn't be caring about 'making love' or whatever. _Feeling betrayed and hurt by his meister, Soul fell asleep to the sound of Liz's slight snoring and the feel of her head lying on his chest.

_I don't need her to love me back to be happy; I don't need anyone to be happy._

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_Did i spell Meister right? :S awks. Anyways, thanks for reading, please review. Flames are welcome! The pairings may be different right now, but give it a few chapters. Love isnt always easy right? Remember, most of my stories include courage. Including tell someone you love them! Please R&R :)  
_

_Bye boys :)  
_


	8. Happiness That Is Only Skin Deep

Hey Guys! Thanks for reading. We're back into the confused feelings of teenagers! Yay. Seriously, this is fun to write and your reviews motivate me to write more, so please, keep reviewing. Flames are welcome. Any sort of review is welcome. I feel awesome with reviews. : ) Also, I'm going to start putting the titles into the chapters.

-I'm here to enkindle courage.

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**Happiness That Is Only Skin Deep**

_What the fuck is happening to us? _ This thought constantly ran through both Maka and Soul's mind as the week went by. Their situations clouded both of their minds as the week continued on. It didn't become an outright argument; everything just…stopped. No words of anger or sorrow; just quiet. They would exchange simple comments or light conversation when around others.

After their hangovers cleared from their heads, they remembered the events of the previous night. Maka remembered Kid explaining to her that he was sad to leave on his journey because he would miss seeing her. He went on and told her that he thought she was amazing and completely perfect in every aspect. Maka remembered that Soul had left her to go be with someone else and Maka, drunk and depressed offered to go into her room to talk more. After the discovery that Kid had feelings for her and he kissed her. She had allowed herself to be taken in by his kisses because of her depression of Soul leaving her to go somewhere else. She remembered them start to get intense and they started letting their hands roam everywhere. No piece of skin was left untouched or unkissed. However when she took off her shirt and bra, Kid, being the gentleman that he was, wouldn't take her while she was intoxicated. She agreed and together they decided that they would wait for a different day. Before going to sleep, she grabbed the nearest shirt, which had happened to be Kid's shirt. She happily snuggled up to him and fell asleep in his arms but had the feeling that she should have been else where.

In the other room, Soul and Liz talked for hours. After hearing that Maka had gone into her room with Kid, Soul decided that he would allow his childish side to take over. He believed that if Maka could be happy with Kid, he could be happy with Liz. After pushing her into the wall, Liz and Soul kissed more than he could remember. Eventually, she pushed him onto his bed and Soul allowed her to undress him. He hesitated when undressing her, but with her being more sober than him, she led his hands to the hem of her shirt and helped him pull her shirt off. With kisses and whispers of small nothings, Soul took her without another thought. He remembered that he had felt satisfied but guilty at the thought of taking Liz's virginity while he was drunk. After vocalizing his thoughts, she had assured him that he hadn't. That she had lost to a previous boyfriend and was happy she did this with Soul. Soul, who had been a virgin, didn't really care about losing his. _I am male after all. It's seriously not a big deal. _He fell asleep satisfied but with an empty feeling of loneliness that he couldn't get over.

After they all came out of the bedrooms, Liz showed a much more touchy-feely relationship, which made Maka's stomach drop. The fact Soul was ignoring her and being the same touchy-feely with Liz, made her stomach sick. Her only escape out of the pain was with Kid. He made her laugh that day more than anyone. Every time a laugh came from her, Soul would pull Liz closer to try to forget that she wasn't laughing with him. Each longed for the other; each assumed the other didn't want them anymore after the discovery of the events of the night.

When Maka came out wearing only Kid's shirt and a pair of spandex, Soul felt terrible. However, when Kid came out shirtless, Soul felt himself become enraged at the thought someone else was touching **his **Maka. But after seeing her laughing with him, Soul let the anger fade. _Her happiness is more important than my own. She looks happy with him. But she's not speaking to me. Maybe I made her mad somehow. _

When Soul came out of his room, Maka was surprised to see Liz come with him. She narrowed her eyes at Soul when he wasn't looking. _I can't believe he slept with her after acting like her liked me. Whatever. _However, after seeing Soul smile with Liz, she let go of her anger. _He's happy with her. Why would I stand in the way of their happiness. _

After that day, their words became empty and shallow. They never went into the deep conversations they used to have. They wouldn't exactly ignore the other person, they would just simply allow a silence take over the house. Blaire had left to go on a trip with her company and without her, the house stayed mostly silent. The only noises were the sounds of either a tv, a music player, or the pages of a book being turned.

Their feelings however, screamed everything. Soul started inviting Liz over when Maka left, which he thought was when she went to Kid. Maka started leaving when she thought Soul was inviting Liz over. They would never speak their thoughts out loud because of the fear of what could happen.

Each assumed the other was mad at them for some reason and, not wanting to start a giant fight that would ruin their friendship, never said anything more than what an acquaintance would say. Talks about how school was or how the weather was or what was for dinner seemed to be the only conversations they got. They seemed to forget they even were partners and bestfriends. They were both scared of making it worse faster, they allowed their relationship to slowly deteriorate.

They hadn't fought for weeks, due to Maka's left knee but it would be fit enough to fight with any day now. Both feared that day in silence. Maka even faked it hurting to delay the inevitable. But eventually, Stein pushed them into battle form. Thinking they were both still scared from the Asura battle and encouraged them to become like their old selves.

_If he only knew. _

However, Maka knew it was her duty to be a good Meister and a good Meister pushes aside everything but the battle away except for her weapon. Soul, being a dutiful weapon, knew that it was his job to work with his Meister and protect her against the other.

Stein had set them up against Kid and the twins. Pulling Kid aside, Stein whispered in his ear.

"Kid, I think they are still scared from the Asura incident and how badly they got hurt. Take it easy on them okay? They've been out of practice for almost a month." Kid nodded and kept his amber eyes of Maka as she stood there with Soul's weapon form in her hands.

On the other side of the field, Maka and Soul both silently were surprised Maka was able to hold him. Both assumed that the other was pissed off at them. This slight victory put hope back into their hearts.

"Okay guys, take it easy. If anything hurts, Maka, stop. Ready? Go!"

Maka dashed forward and took an aggressive approach to Kid's defense. _I know he's going to take it easy and not attack. Best defence is a good offense. I have to make Soul not want to change partners. Even though it's Kid, I was to win this fight. _Maka attacked with fast, shallow swings, forcing her opponent back. She swept her feet underneath Kid, making him jump upward, which she expected. Forcing the butt end into Kid's chest, she sent him flying down the field. Soul, slightly smirking, thought to him. _That's the Maka I know. Not letting anything get to her. No pain, no thoughts. _

"Maka, that was great. I think you'll be fine." Stein called from his chair. _It's amazing she landed a blow on him. It seems Maka has been holding back before. _

"Yeah Maka! I definitely didn't see that coming!" Kid smiled at her as he threw Liz and Patty into the air. They transformed and stood behind their Meister.

"Thanks, Kid." She smiled at him as she felt Soul transform. Momentarily forgetting to let go, Soul transformed with his hand in hers. Both let the hands linger before Liz spoke up and they swiftly let go of each other.

"That was great guys! Its gunna be just like old times!"

Patty looked at her sister and tilted her head. "But sis, it's only been a month! Not a few years." She said as she laughed.

Turning slightly pink, Liz spoke again. "You guys know what I mean. We can fight in a group again and kick some serious ass!"

Kid walked over and smiled at Maka. "Yeah, I've missed having you watch my back. I think Black*Star forgets I'm there when he enters one of his speeches." Giggling, Maka smiled back at the reaper.

"Don't worry, Kid. I'll make sure no one hurts you." _I missed fighting with him. He's so powerful that I feel we're invincible when we're fighting together. _

"Hey, Soul! How did it feel being back into the fight?" Liz bounded over to his side and hugged him. "I had almost forgotten what your weapon form looked like."

"Hey, not cool, Liz." He smirked and pointed his thumb at himself. "How could you forget what a cool scythe like myself looks like. I mean, I am the most badass one ever." He laughs.

Punching his arm lightly, Maka turned to her partner. "Geesh, someone is talking like Black*Star." Forgetting that Soul was probably mad at her, Maka quickly withdrew her hand and looked away from him. _Well, at least he didn't yell at me._

Soul, slightly surprised she had talked, answered. "Hey, Black*Star over exaggerates. I'm just stating the obvious, bookworm." He laughs. _I forgot how much I used to call her that. I kinda missed it. And I guess she isn't as mad as I thought if she's talking to me. _

"Well, I guess we're done for the day, right Professor Stein?"

"Yeah. But Maka, did you feel any pain at all when you were fighting?"

_I could lie to avoid fighting with Soul again, but we started talking because of it. Maybe he was mad because he couldn't fight without me? _"No pain at all." She smiled at her teacher. He nodded and went back toward the school.

"In that case, it sounds like a celebration is in order. Care for lunch?" Kid said to the group. Liz, making eye contact briefly with Kid, pulled Soul's waist.

"Sorry, I have to go shopping for clothes! Have fun!" Patty strolls away from the group humming a song of no particular tune.

"Actually, Soul and I have made plans. He wanted me to teach him to make a certain dish that he likes." Liz swiftly spoke.

"I did what—ow!" He looked at Liz and she widened her eyes and slightly nodded toward the pair that was standing together. _Oh, I guess Maka would wanna be alone with Kid right now. That's cool of Liz to pick that up. _Soul felt his previous excitement fade and his stomach feel sick.

Playing along, he grabs Liz's waist, "Yeah, sorry guys. Maybe next time?" He smiles on the outside but his insides feel empty. _I shouldn't use Liz like this. I know she really likes me. But maybe I can end up happy with her. I mean, Kid and Maka look happy. _

"Oh, okay. Well, Kid, shall we?" Maka turns and starts to walk away. _He looks so happy with her. I wonder what it would be like if I was her? Maybe Soul never really cared about me more than a partner or, at most, a friend. Kid's a great guy and do enjoy time with him. Maybe I can be happy with him. _

Maka turns to see Kid laughing but Soul and Liz have started walking toward Soul's bike. At little flustered and confused at what he's laughing at, Maka stares blankly. "What's so funny?"

Calming himself, Kid answers her with a grin on his face. "Sorry, you just looked so depressed that you had to walk. You do know that I have my own means of transportation."

_Sad about walking? What...Oh. Right. _"Oh, Haha, right. Sad about walking. Yup. But two people can't fit on Beelzebub comfortably."

"Yes, but it will make our trip shorter if we squish a little. Unless you're too embarrassed to be seen so close to me." He challenged her.

"Yes, I just find you so asymmetrical that you disgust me." She laughed, expecting him too. Instead, he turned around and said nothing. Seeing her mistake, she speaks out again. "Kid, I was just kid—"

"You're right! Garbage! Useless garbage! No wonder you don't want to be close to me! I'm hideous! I'm a disgrace to be a reaper! I should kill myself!" He falls to the ground and starts pounding it with his fists.

Slightly overwhelmed by the outburst she had caused, Maka found herself momentarily speechless. "No Kid! You're amazing! You're perfect just that way you are." She says, awkwardly tapping his back. Ignoring her, he continues to shout unrecognizable words. "Listen Kid, you are like, the only thing that keeps me sane right now. I need you to calm down. Everything about you is perfect. You're a great guy and the asymmetrical parts about you pale in comparison." He stops crying to look at her.

"But symmetry is the only thing I know! And I can't even get that right. I'm pointless, Maka." He looks away, unable to meet her eyes.

"No it isn't kid. You have other features." She pauses and begins to think how to word things. _What do I say to Soul when he's upset about not being as good as his brother? _"You have a reckless sense of duty that causes you to wildly protect anything important to you, which causes you to put yourself in danger. Stupid, but admirable. Seriously, you should think about your own safety first but you don't. You have undeniable courage that stands out when everyone has backed down. You have a great strength that allows you to fight through any pain you have. Your kind words are enough to put anyone at ease. You're loyal and compassionate and bold and a great wea- meister. You mean so much to me. Please calm down and see all the good in you. Please? For me?" She opens her eyes to find him staring at her with a look of awe on his face. Obviously, he had long forgotten about what he was upset about. _Oh death, I had almost forgotten who I was talking to. But thank goodness, he's okay now. _She gives him a small smile and offers her hand to pull him up.

He gladly takes her hand but after she lets go he pulls her into him. He grasps her in his arms and hugs her. Overwhelmed, she stands as a statue for a moment until she calms herself enough to hug him back. With one hand on her back and the other at her neck, Kid pulls her close and whispers to her.

"Thank you, Maka. You're an amazing person." Letting her go, he calls up Beelzebub and steps on it. Holding his hand out for her, he smiles at her.

_Kid, you are an amazing person. I really hope that I can be happy with you because right now I need someone to fix what Soul accidentally broke. Please fix me. I need someone who can. _

Taking his hand, she steps onto the board.

"Okay, put your foot here and your other here." She ended up facing him with her feet on the inside of his own. Fighting the blush that was creeping up her cheeks, Maka stood like a statue. "No need to be nervous, I'll make sure you don't fall. This may be awkward but just hug me hard enough so you don't fall." He laughs as she manages to relax and grabs onto him. She can hear his calm heartbeat and it soothes her nerves. She feels like she could belong here, in his arms. But there was the nagging feeling that she would be a better fit elsewhere. But she knew that spot was taken by another. She feels that maybe, she can be happy here. If she tries her hardest to be happy. _But shouldn't happiness be something that is felt, not thought? _She lets this thought bounce around in her head and she hugs Kid tighter when the skateboard takes off.

"No need to be nervous, Maka. I've got you. I won't ever let you fall. Don't be scared or nervous." He smiles down at her and pats her back. She smiles at his and puts her head back against his chest.

_That isn't what I'm nervous about._

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Thanks for sticking with this story guys. It's far from finished however. We still need to beat the bad guy and to get to the right relationships! Please stick around and don't forget to review. I love you all :)

Review! It doesn't take long!


	9. Silence Isn't Enough Anymore

Hey guys. So you're all making me sad with the lack of reviews. : ( Please show me some love!

-I'm here to enkindle courage.

**READ . THE TITLE OF THE STORY IF GOING TO BE CHANGED AT SOME POINT. PLEASE DO NOT FORGET THIS!**

**READ . THE TITLE OF THE STORY IF GOING TO BE CHANGED AT SOME POINT. PLEASE DO NOT FORGET THIS!**

* * *

**Silence Isn't Enough Anymore**

It was hot out, to say the least. She enjoyed the breeze that went by her sweat clad legs as she stood in the dark, waiting for a sign. She could hear the silent panting of Kid and the slight shift of movement from Black*Star. Her hand was sweaty, but hopefully he couldn't feel it because of her gloves. At a different time, she would have been flustered and nervous. But right now wasn't the time for that.

Previously, Kid had been assigned this mission alone but after much insisting from Stein that Maka was ready for another mission, Lord Death assigned her to go. Feeling left out, Black*Star petitioned the older reaper to be able to go along. Apparently, the wannabe-assassin had been working on his stealth and stopped himself from shouting before an attack. He argued that this mission was stealth based which, indeed, it was.

There was activity in the capital city of Croatia, Zagreb, that wasn't completely natural. The spider queen Arachne's minion Giriko had been spotted by a retired weapon that lived in the area. The trio's job was to spot and follow him to discover his purpose of being in Europe. They weren't ordered to attack, or infiltrate the hide out. Just to discover their purpose and where the location of Arachne was. It was simply a stealth mission.

They stood on the roof tops of the city, shroud in darkness. Originally, Maka had felt she would be out of place on a stealth mission, for it would be her first. She begrudgingly asked Black*Star to train her in basic stealth for a few weeks before they had left. Maka, diligent and hardworking as ever, managed to accomplish stealth by herself, but Soul, in weapon form, had been too clunky for her to sneak with.

Frustrated at her inability to hide with him, she asked if he could attempt being stealthy in human form with the three of them. The three debated the pros and cons of Soul being in human form when they were stalking a dangerous individual. With enough practice, Soul managed to pick up the speed in which he could transform. He was one of the fastest in the academy before, but now, no one could compete with his skill in changing.

Soul was much harder to train, in Black*Star and Tsubaki's opinion. He was unused to physical movement in battle. He was used to using his soul to help with Maka's attack. He was…clumsy at best for a few days. But, like most things, Soul picked up the basics of the technique. After managing to sneak up on Stein and Spirit, they all decided they were ready to head for Europe to start the mission.

So, here they were, the first night of their arrival, standing on a roof top. Maka had been confused at first as to how she would be able to get down quickly if Giriko showed, but Kid explained that he could quickly bring her down if Soul transformed on the way down and then just transformed back after.

It seemed that he wouldn't show tonight. Maka and Kid's soul perception couldn't spot him at all. The four standing on the roof agreed to wait another hour, in case he came out in the dead of night. Liz and Patty quietly complained to Kid that his jacket pockets were extremely warm with them in it. Tsubaki, in Ninja Blade tucked into a sheath said silent the majority of the time. She truly was the best at stealth, even Black*Star who had worked diligently on his stealth, could hold up nothing in comparison.

An hour past and not a disturbance was felt from the man they were looking for. Maka had noticed a pre-kishin and was about to say sometime until she met the amber eyes in the dark. They reminded her of their job of not being noticed. Arachne was surly aware of the creature and if it suddenly disappeared, their cover would be blown. She smiled at him, silently thanking him for reminding her.

Soul clad in different attire than he was used to, was feeling uncomfortable. _I didn't realize how challenging this would be. At least I listened to Black*Star and got pants that are fabric and not my usual jeans. But seriously, all of this black is completely uncool. I can't believe they even made me wear a freaking hat to hide my hair. I mean, it __**is**__really white but it's dark out! You can't even see it. So uncool. _Soul forced himself to complain in his head to stop himself from thinking about holding Maka's hand. It was the only way he could keep sane. Ever since Kid asked Maka out, he forced himself to think of something other than her.

_But telling myself to not think about something will make me think about it. Don't think about penguins, Soul. Don't think about penguins. What am I thinking about now? Penguins._ This was Soul's lame attempt at trying to deflect his thoughts of his Meister. He was her partner; her best friend, he had to always be there for her. Her happiness is the most important thing to him, even if that happiness wasn't with him.

While waiting for Maka or Kid to say something about spotting Giriko, Soul would let his mind wander about things. _What if I had done this? Would things be different? If I had kissed her when the towel incident happened? If I had told her that I lo-liked her again after she woke up in the hospital? What if I hadn't left to go play beer pong with Liz? Would I be sleeping with Liz? Would I be with Maka? Or would everything be worse? Would she still have gone to Kid? Would she have changed partners? _These thoughts would bounce around in his head whenever things were quiet.

Eventually, they left their spot in the darkness. They removed anything that caused others to look on with suspicion and traveled back to the hotel. The academy had paid for the penthouse suite in one of the best hotels in the city. They would be there for a few weeks and the academy wanted to keep them comfy. The fact that Lord Death's son was along probably helped them pick this suite.

There were 4 bed rooms, each with a double bed. Soul assumed the academy had thought same genders would sleep together. Obviously they didn't realise they were 17-19 year olds. Maka and Soul had originally assumed that they would sleep with their partners and either Kid or one of the sisters would get the extra bed. They each set down their things down in the room with the fireplace.

"Maka! Wanna have this room or the one upstairs?" Kid said from down the hall. The pair froze when they remembered that their significant others were along for this trip and they would probably want to be with them. Soul inwardly groaned. Whenever Liz slept with him, no matter how tired they were, she would want to _**sleep**_ with him. He couldn't just push her away and sleep because that would make things awkward. So he would just go along with it. He never thought he would be a guy who would complain about sex, but when they had to be up early and it was already late, it became a little hassle.

Maka, who hadn't slept with Kid yet, just sighed. "Which ever you want, Kid. I don't mind which." Picking her bags back up, she glances at Soul who wouldn't meet her eyes. _I guess he was wondering why I was in his and Liz's room. He must think I'm pretty lame for assuming that we would share sleeping arrangements. Besides, _she thought bitterly, _he probably wants a room to fuck Liz in. _It hadn't become completely announced, but from the touchy-feely relationship the two had and from the noises that came from his room after Maka came home from dates with Kid, she could only assume that that was happening.

Leaving Soul to unpack, Maka walked out with her stuff back up the stairs of the two floor pent house, passing Liz on the way who gave her a smile. Maka smiled in return but only felt bitterness as she watch Liz go into Soul's room. Maka passed by Black*Star's room and Tsubaki's room. She knew that they shared the same room in their flat back home, so she assumed they weren't going to be awkward. But when she looked in, Tsubaki was red and sitting on the edge of her bed while Black*Star was sitting in a chair across from her. Maka couldn't tell what they were talking about, but clearly it was embarrassing for the two of them. Continuing on, she walked by Patty's room. _How does she manage to bring all of those stuffed giraffes with her? She only had a tiny bag! She's practically swimming in them!_ Chuckling to herself, she walked into her and Kid's room and set up stuff down on the bed. Walking over to the giant window, which acted as the wall, Maka looked out across the darkened city.

Feeling arms wrap around her waist, Maka leaned back into the chest behind her and sighed. _I can be happy here. It's been a few weeks with him and I still think of Soul. But it hurts less when I'm here. Don't worry, Kid. I'm sure I can like you back as much as you like me one day. _She feels him put his head into the crook of her neck and kisses her. She hums in response.

"It's a beautiful city." Maka breaks the silence.

"But it's not the most beautiful thing I've ever seen." He says into her neck. She doesn't have to fight a blush. She just turns and smiles at him. He pulls her into him and hugs her. "Come on, it's late. We should sleep. We need to be up early to start looking again. I won't see you after we split up to look and I want to hold you right now to make up for it. Okay?" He smiles down at her and kisses the top of her head. She silently nods and pulls out her pajamas from her bag. _Since he's already seen me topless, I don't really care if I change in front of him. _She nonchalantly changes in front of him, half expecting him to turn around, she glances up to see that he's taken a seat at the edge of the bed and was silently watching her with his amber eyes. Suddenly blushing at the intentness of his eyes, Maka speaks to him.

"Sorry, I should've changed in the bathroom." She's just about to pull her shirt of her head when Kid dashes forward and stop her from doing so. "What's wro—"She's cut off by a hungry kiss from her boyfriend as he slowly pushes he until her bare back is against the window. His kisses go lower until they reach her neck when he stops himself and chuckles.

"Maka, you make it extremely hard to act like a gentleman around you." He kisses he neck more, causing her back to arch as he kisses a sensitive area. She lets a little moan escape her mouth at this new feeling. "You're innocents really will be my undoing. How did you think I would react when I see my unbelievably gorgeous girlfriend naked in front of me?" These words cause her to blush. _This is not what I thought would happen. _

"I.." She finds words hard to form at the feeling of Kid's kisses consume her. She lets her shirt fall from her hands and covers her chest. Kid grabs them and pins them against the window.

"Don't…don't cover yourself. You're beautiful, Maka." He says in a rough and husky voice that reminds her of a certain somebody's sleepy voice. For some reason, the reminder of this voice makes her body unbearably hot. _I can't let my hormones get ahead of me. This is __**Kid**__, Maka. Not… _Her thoughts are stopped as his kisses travel slowly south. He lingers momentarily, waiting for her to stop him. When she doesn't he continues downward. Her thoughts become clouded and she gives into the feeling of pleasure. She closes her eyes and forgets about all of the pain that Soul had accidently caused her and gives in to feeling. _If Soul can be happy with her, I can be happy with him. _She allows him to undress her until she decides to take charge and pushes him back to the bed and undresses him.

Kid and Maka gave into their lust and teenage hormones for what seemed to be hours. After, Maka had no regret of giving her virginity to someone who actually cared about her. She felt satisfied with what had happened but couldn't stop her mind from bringing Soul's face into her mind. Tired of fighting with the image that kept appearing, Maka made herself comfortable in Kid's arms, thinking of someone else. She manages to fall asleep until she is awoken by a crash of lightning. Unable to get back to sleep and finding no comforting safety in her sleeping boyfriend's arms, Maka climbs out of bed, throws some clothes on and wanders into the kitchen. _I guess no sleep tonight. _She flinches at every crash of lightning as she boils water for some tea to calm her. _Soul usually comes and lets me listen to him music when storms get this bad. But he's probably too busy with Liz. _

Soul lays in bed, waiting for sleep to come, but in this dead of night he realizes this is the moment where he is most vulnerable to his tormenting thoughts. His barrier of noise and movement would fall against the thoughts he dared not to think in daylight, would weaken, as he teeters between the line of awareness and unconsciousness. He falls asleep for a few hours but that is gone as soon as a crash of thunder and a flash of lightning make him awaken. He immediately assumes he's back at home, turns to grab something from his dresser, only to hit air and fall out of bed. Cursing quietly, Soul rubs the arm he fell on. Throwing on some pajama pants, Soul grabs a pair of headphones and his ipod. _If Maka wakes up, she's going to go to the kitchen and make tea to try fall asleep again. The idiot always forgets that it doesn't help. I can leave this upstairs and she can use it when she finds them. _He stops before climbing the stairs. _But she's with Kid. Maybe he's comforting her. _He then shrugs and climbs the stairs anyway. _I'm up anyways. Might as well leave them there in case._

It's dark when he gets up the stairs. He fumbles around and reaches for a wall to help him find his way to the kitchen. He turns the corner, only to see a light streaming from under the door. He half smiles to himself at Maka's predictableness. He silently opens the door to see her sitting at the table with untouched tea in front of her. Her arms and legs and pulled tight to her as she tries to ignore the sounds. Soul stands there for a moment and pulls his ipod out. He turns on some slow jazz that usually makes her fall asleep.

He walks up to her and silently puts them in her ears, just like he does at home, when he finds her on the couch. As he brushes the hair from her neck, he can see little red marks covering it. He freezes and wills away the anger he immediately feels and continues putting them in. Maka, slightly startled, looks up at him. She sees his concerned face for her and she smiles weakly at him and nods. He scratches the back of his neck in response. A silent thank you. He sits beside her and takes her tea. Maka lifts her head to look at him, she can see tiny kiss marks across his neck and sighs. _Of course. _

It seems, by now, that their ritual was coming back naturally to them. She would always waken first, make tea and not drink it. He would follow in, shortly after and put head phones in. He then takes the untouched tea and drinks it for her. The exchange would always be completely silent, like words would just contaminate the air. But this time, it was different. Silence had forced them into this situation. Silence had caused each of them no end of grief. Silence had caused suffering. Both seemed determined to speak, but couldn't find words.

They open their mouths to speak at the same time, but close when they see the other about to talk. Soul nods at her to go first. Tired of being scared of the consequences of saying what she felt, she silently grabs Soul's hand and whispers her feelings in two words.

"Thank you." She squeezes his hand and puts her head back down onto the table and closes her eyes. She almost doesn't hear him reply over the sound of the soothing music he put into her ears.

"Can't let my meis—my best friend be by herself when she's scared, can I?" He squeezes her hand back and puts is head down on the table and looks at her. She turns her head to him and smiles, really smiles, at him. _It's been a long time since I was happy like this. _She closes her eyes again as she lets the presence of Soul consume her. The smell of him, the feel of his hand, even the music defined him. She finally felt relaxed and falls into a dreamless sleep.

Soul look at his sleeping partners and smiles. _So cute, even when she's sleeping. _He allows the one thought to bounce around in his head. He doesn't push it away. Right now, there was no Kid, no Liz, it was just them. Clasping hands and calmly comforting each other. Soul ends up falling asleep with a smile on his face, still holding her hand.

_I guess sleep can come to me when I'm in the right place._

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**READ . THE TITLE OF THE STORY IF GOING TO BE CHANGED AT SOME POINT. PLEASE DO NOT FORGET THIS!**

Thanks guys! See you later. Review please


	10. Still Not Out Loud

Yay! Two in one day! Review. Also, reminder **THE TITLE IS CHANGING SOON. IT WILL NO LONGER BE SLEEPING CONFESSIONS. **

-I'm here to enkindle courage.

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**Still Not Out Loud**

Upon waking, the Soul found himself in the kitchen more tired than when he had fallen asleep. He opened his eyes and saw Maka sleeping with her mouth slightly open with a small patch of wetness leaking. He chuckled and reached over to wipe her cheek, letting it linger longer than he should have.

Pulling his hand back, he let out a yawn and stretched out his sore back. The red numbers 7:34 flashed in his face from the microwave. He had half an hour before everyone would get up to get ready. He began to pull his right hand free from Maka's grasp when she pulled back. Slightly started from the sudden movement, she opened her eyes and yawned. Soul, standing up, watching as she remembered where she was, chuckled at her momentary confusion. Discovering she was holding his hand while he was trying to pull it free made her blush. Letting go she mumbled an apology.

He just laughed and took the empty cup from the table and put it in the sink.

"You should probably go shower before the other girls get up and use them." _Three bathrooms are not enough for 4 girls. _

Yawning for the second time, Maka nodded and stretched. She mumbled thanks and handed him his iPod and head phones.

"No worries, what are partners for?" Maka internally winced at the word. _Calls us best friends last night and now we're just partners? Whatever, it's early to jump to conclusions. _

Just before she walked out of the room, she called over her shoulder, "How did you know I was up?"

Soul shrugged, "All cool guys know when their best friend is in trouble." He gave her one of his infamous smiles and turned around to start a pot of coffee. _See Maka? He called you a best friend. Told you that he didn't mean anything by partners. _She smiled and then continued on to the shower beside the kitchen.

Stripping down, Maka looked at herself in the mirror. She noticed that she had gained back the muscle she had previously lost from the injury from Asura almost two months ago. It had been a long time since she had _really_ looked at herself. It must have been a few days before the party at the academy which lead to the battle. She had gone shopping with her friends and bought new clothes and underwear. She had been surprised that her breast size had increased from an A to a B and that the number had gone up as well. She looked at all of the scars that traced her body. One below her knee from the battle with Giriko. One above her right elbow from fighting Crona the first time. One in the middle of her left palm when she caught Soul the wrong way the first time he transformed. She chuckled at that memory.

She had been around the age of twelve when her and Soul first started practicing. She threw him in the air, as she does now, and slipped on a patch of grass and caught him with the blade. She had been lucky she hadn't lost her hand. But it was the first time she had seen Soul's true emotions. He had been terrified for her; calling out for help immediately and insisting on carrying her to the nurse's office, even though she could walk perfectly fine. He had been over protective from the very beginning with her. He acted like she had been a weak, little thing, totally helpless when it came to battle.

Maka wouldn't admit it out loud, but she realizes now, that that had been the case. She may have had a temper as wild as fire, but she didn't have the strength to back it up. She started working out a lot to gain strength so that Soul wouldn't have to worry so much for her. But by the age of 14, she came to realize that no matter how strong she became, Soul would continue to be over protective of her. And apparently, she would always be.

She hummed as she entered the shower, giggling at all of the goofy expressions that Soul would make when he let his emotions get the better of him. She giggled again after getting out and wrapped a towel around herself letting her hair cascade down her shoulders. "Haha, Soul. What would I do without you?"

Soul had been in the kitchen as Maka showered. Since he showered last night, he wouldn't be showering this morning. He contemplated wetting his hair to make it easier to work with. Making sure that the coffee pot was actually on and working, which he sometimes forgot to do, Soul walked out the kitchen door. When passing the bathroom, he could hear Maka giggling to herself. Confused as to what she was giggling, Soul shrugged. _Women._

"Haha, Soul. What would I do without you?" Soul froze at the words. _She knows I'm out here? She must definitely think I'm spying on her! Should I answer her? Yeah, be cool here dude. Brain, don't fail me now. _

"Not be nearly as cool as you are now!" He teased, leaning his weight against the door. Suddenly, the door flies open and Soul finds himself staring up at Maka who looks amused. Her hair sticks to her face has she holds the towel wrapped around her upper body with her pajama pants on. She starts laughing at him as he continues to lay on the floor.

Not willing to let her win, he puts his hands behind his head and states, "This is comfortable. Thanks." He winks and flashes her a toothy grin. Shaking her head, she aims to step over him, but he accidently moves his leg as she's stepping down and she falls forward, letting go of her towel. Quickly throwing her hands up to cover her chest, she turns with wide eyes at Soul who was now sitting up. Both didn't know what to say, but Soul managed to pass her the towel that had dropped on him after she fell. Both turning a shade of pink, both avoid the gaze of the other. Maka tries to say something but is interrupted.

"Maka? Are you upstairs?" The sound of Kid coming up the stairs put the two into action. Soul pulled her into the bathroom with him and shut the door.

Maka finds herself pushed up against Soul's chest. She nearly melts at the idea of her being topless, pressed against Soul. She arms were wrapped around him, and the only thing between the skin of their chests, was Soul's thin tank top. Knocking on the door startles her.

"Maka? Why are you showing in here instead of in our room?" Kid sounds confused.

Keeping her voice steady as possible, she answers. "Sorry! I didn't want to wake you! You can go shower and I'll see you in a bit, kay?" She manages to put a cute twist when she says the word 'kay' so he doesn't suspect anything is wrong.

"Okay, see you in a few!" She hears him walk away and hears Soul release a breath of relief.

It all comes back to him in a rush; a monumental wave. It knocks him stupid. Every little feeling he had had during the last two months attacked his mind. Every jealous thought of her and Kid. Every perverted thought he had of her whenever he slept with Liz. Ever agonising touch they shared. Every reason as to why the girl in his arms belonged there more than anyone became crystal clear. At the moment, he didn't care that she was half naked, or that she was dripping on him, or that she was holding on to him just as tightly as he was holding her; it meant nothing to him. All of the unspoken words mattered. All of the words he had wanted to say to her to her came to mind. He looked down at the amazing woman who was wrapped in his arms.

She melted into him, enjoying finally being embraced by him. She couldn't help the fact that this is where she felt at home. All of the thoughts she had been pushing away for Kid crashed into her skull. All of the thoughts that dared showed their faces in the daylight came to her along with all of the ones that tortured her during the night. Right now, she didn't care that she was with Kid, or that he was with Liz. All that matter what the feeling of his arms around her back and his breath on her neck. She looked up into his eyes. Neither moved for a few seconds, but slowly their faces gravitated toward each other.

A bang and shouting by Black*Star woke the pair from their misty paradise. Eyes widened at how close they had been to kissing. Maka tripped backward and hit the door, making sure her hands covered her chest as she went. Soul took a step back and didn't look at her as she snatched her towel from the ground and dashed out the door. She had left her shirt behind. Soul sighed. _I'll have to give it to her later. _

Soul, now pretty wet, among other things, decided it would be best to take a shower; a cold shower. He allowed his mind to be taken over at the thought of Maka being half naked, pressed against him. He tried to drown out his thoughts by humming a small tune.

Maka had never in her life ran that fast before. By the time she managed to retreat to her and Kid's room. It then fully hit her; what had they been doing? _Is that considered cheating? We didn't do anything! But the way we were…what we were doing. Oh, death. What the fuck is going on! I'm with Kid, not Soul! _

She could hear Kid coming out of the shower and realized she needs to calm down her heart beat because Kid would be able to tell. Closing her eyes, she silently forced her heart to slow down. Taking a deep breath, she opened her eyes and walked toward her dresser and pulled out clothes to wear. _I have to spend the whole day, travelling this city, with Soul. Alone. I feel like Crona. I don't know how to deal with this. _Feeling arms wrapping around her waist, Maka momentarily tensed. She felt wrong, that this action was wrong. _We've been dating for a month. This is fine, Maka. Chill. Be cool. Man, I sound like Soul. _

"Ready to venture around this beautiful city?" Kid says to her.

"While looking for someone who has the potential to kill me? Yeah, sure." She laughs. _Good. That's better. Much more natural. Whatever these feelings I am having for Soul are just my teenage hormones. I have Kid. I like Kid. _

"Tsk, don't be like that Maka. It's just a stealth mission. Don't worry."

Maka brings something up she had been curious about for a while. "How are we going to communicate with everyone?"

"Oh, I forgot to tell you guys! That could have ended poorly." Kid walks over to his suit case and opens it. He pulls out a smaller box. "My honorable father bought these for us so we could keep in touch. Liz, Patty and I already had one, so he just bought everyone else one." Kid pulls out cellphones of different varieties. Android phones were in the bag. "Android phones were picked because it seems to withstand damage more than the others. The green one is yours. You name is engraved on the case. Like everybody else's. Each number already has all of the other numbers."

Maka was surprised. _Those are expensive phones! I can't believe this. But we won't be able to afford the plan once we get home. _Her face momentarily drops and she begins to explain to Kid they can't keep them. "Don't worry; the academy is going to pay for the basic fees. Having a shinigami for a boyfriend helps a lot, Maka." He smiles and kisses her cheek before leaving her to go change.

"Hey, if you're done getting ready, can you go give them to everybody else?"

"Yeah sure." She pulls out her new phone and puts it into her pocket. Walking up the stairs, she passes by Tsubaki and Black*Star's room and knocked. A moment later, a slightly blushing Black*Star answered the door.

"Yeah, we're almost done."

"Kid bought everyone cell phones! Here are your guys'" Maka said with a smile. She handed Black*Star a blue one for himself and a white one for Tsubaki.

Speechless for a moment, Black*Star takes the phones. Nodding a thank you to Maka, he shut the door. _Kid really knows how to make everyone happy. _She smiled to herself, but stopped in the kitchen. Soul had his back to her and was fixing up two coffees. _Probably for Liz and him. _Forcing herself to smile, Maka walked up to him.

"Hey, Kid bought cellphones for everyone. They're awesome." She says in a fake cheery voice.

Slightly startled, Soul turns around with both coffees in hand. "I was just coming to get you. Here's your coffee. It seems we both need it after sleeping on a coffee table." He smiles at her and grabs the red phone from her and sits at the table turning it on. _Since when is Soul a… gentlemen?_

"Thanks, you didn't have to."

"'ts kay." He replies after taking a sip from his coffee. He acts normally around her, causing her to become calm. They have a friendly conversation about their new phones. _Thank goodness she's ignoring what happened this morning. I can be calm if she is. _

Eventually, everyone appeared in the kitchen and grabbed a coffee. Everyone ended up either sitting around the table or sitting in the bar stools. They all agreed what areas of the city they would take and made sure everyone had the correct cellphone numbers in their contacts.

Walking out of the apartment, Kid grabbed Maka's hand in front of Soul and smiled at her. Soul, feeling the green jealousy bubbly, grabbed Liz by the waist and led her to the elevator. Everyone wasn't totally surprised when they saw Black*Star hold out his hand for Tsubaki while blushing. She grabbed it. _I guess this is their silent announcement about them getting together. _Maka thought cheerfully, ignoring the way Liz hugged Soul while they all stood in the elevator.

Exiting the building, everyone was dressed in a casual dress; nothing that would make them recognisable as meisters or weapons. They were going to split up with their respective partners and search the city. They were to call on one another when the target was spotted. While giving Maka a kiss on the cheek, Kid hugs her and waves goodbye. Liz kisses Soul goodbye and follows Kid. Black*Star and Tsubaki wave goodbye to them and walk away. Soul and Maka find themselves alone.

They walk silently for a while. Eventually, the crowded streets of Zagreb make them come close to losing each other. Soul ended up ahead of Maka without noticing.

"Soul!" She yells, trying to get his attention. He turns around, frantically looking for her. He reaches out to grab her hand as she reaches toward him. Pulling her into his chest, he forces room for her to stand in the crowd. Finally, she can walk beside him without being crushed. However, neither person pulls away their hand. If asked out loud, they would say it wasn't to be split up. But on the inside, each held a happy thought in.

Stopping for lunch seemed smart enough after searching for a few hours. What they didn't expect was to find their target eating at the café across from them. Giving her his trademark smile, Soul pays for lunch while Maka calls the others. Grabbing his hand, she looks up at him.

"Ready?" He asks her.

"Of course." She smiled at him. "Let's go." He smiles back at her as they make their way to their target.

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Yay. Alright. Review and stuff. Reviews make me wanna write more. So if you want more, review more. :)


	11. Not the Simplest of Beginnings

I know this is a short chapter. Forgive me. **THE TITLE CHANGED GUYS. DON'T FORGET THAT. **

**-**I'm here to enkindle courage :)

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**Not the Simplest of Beginnings**

_This is starting to get boring. All he's doing is fucking grocery shopping. Seriously. Since when do murders grocery shop?! _Soul peered over his magazine, which wasn't being read, to look at Maka. _She always got her head in a book! Even when we're on a mission._ He laughed on the inside as he watched his meister read her book while trying to cover it with a magazine from the store. _To anyone else, she looks like she's just super into an article in that magazine. But I know he well enough to know that she could give a shit less about the lives about celebrities. _

_He_ was unaware of where Giriko currently was within the grocery store, but trusted Maka's soul perception to know where he was. Black*Star and Tsubaki had texted him saying that they were currently on the roof, watching out in case Giriko spotted Maka and Soul and recognized them. Kid and the sisters had yet to show themselves or text. Soul assumed he had his soul protect on, in case someone recognized his strong wave length and were somewhere in the area watching them from the shadows. Soon, when the streets became deserted, Maka and Soul will withdraw and join Black*Star on the roof to continue following Giriko.

_We've been tailing this idiot for hours. It's almost sunset. We haven't even eaten since around 11. I'm starving! So un-freaking-cool. We haven't sat in 9 hours! My feet are killing me. Sometimes I'm so glad I'm the weapon and Maka's the meister. _Soul complained in his mind, knowing it would do no good to complain out loud. Giriko had wandered the city seemly with no goal in mind. _He's been window shopping and eating. To the casual eye, he just looks like a dude who has too much time on his hands and no one to spend it with._ Looking toward the window, Soul noticed that the final moments of the sun being up were upon them.

"Maka." Mumbled Soul.

"Yeah?" She replied back to him, looking over.

"If we're gunna tail him at night, we should change into those other clothes soon." He nodded over toward the dwindling sunlight. She glanced over in that direction and face palmed.

"Crap. Yeah. Kay, there's a bathroom over there. I'll go change first. Giriko is in the meat department, if he leaves, follow him. I'll be able to find you with my soul perception. Don't lose him. He's really good at hiding his wave length." Soul nodded and moved toward the meat department to watch Giriko. Soul watched him pick up different cuts of meat and examine them. _He seems like he really knows what he's doing. This is super weird. Why do I feel like a stalker and not someone tailing a wanted criminal? _Fortunately, he didn't go anywhere while both Maka and Soul changed.

_How can someone spend an hour in a grocery store? What the hell is he still doing?_ Maka looked over the cereal stand and saw her target yelling at the butcher for cutting his meat too thickly. _This is going to take a long time. I should prepare myself for the mission. _She began recalled the story Kid had texted everyone about how Giriko came into the picture with Arachne. Maka had yet to think deeply about it.

Apparently, while she had been wounded in the hospital, Kid, the sisters, and Crona had gone on a mission to test drive Crona's ability to do work for the academy. They had encountered Giriko within an abandoned ruin sleeping with an empty bottle of wine. When he woke from their presence, he started yelling at Kid for drinking all of his wine. Flabbergasted at finding a drunken man in the deepest part of the ruin, Kid threw his hands up in protest and walked backward tripping over a loose stone. By falling backward, Kid knocked over a jar. Hundreds of spiders that without the help of magic couldn't have fit in the jar poured on to the floor. Suddenly, the man turned his legs into a saw and attacked Kid while he was unarmed. Crona jumped in the way and was slashed. Quickly hardening his blood, Crona hadn't been hurt.

After seeing the spiders crawl out of the broken jar, Giriko smiled maliciously. He told them that he had waited 800 years for someone stupid enough to break the jar to release his old mistress. He had been tasked with taking care of the jar and waiting for her arrival. He had had a spell casted on him that had made him unable to break the jar himself. Only someone who didn't serve the spider queen could break the jar. This spell had been cast by Lord Death, 800 years previously. Giriko laughed at the irony of the shinigami undoing the spell of his father. Arachne had quickly appeared before them and sent monster spiders after the four students as they made their escape. But before she left, she asked Crona, "How is my sister, Medusa doing? And tell Death I said hello. I've missed him."

Unfortunately, by being reminded of his dead mother, Crona went into a rage and flew after Arachne. Laughing at his feeble attempt, she easily casted a spell that threw him to the side into a wall causing internal damage that stopped the black blood from working. Kid quickly became over whelmed by the force and amount of spiders that attacked him. Kid had fled from the ruins with Crona in his arms. He collapsed when he got to the steps of the academy from blood loss. If he hadn't been a shinigami, he would have died there. Thankfully, he healed within three days and was able to fight 2 days after that. Crona has yet to leave the corner of his room. _So that's why I haven't seen Crona since the battle! I should visit him and try to make him feel better. Poor guy. _

They knew little about Arachne. Lord Death cunningly avoided sharing information on her. Kid only remembered stories his father had told him when he was much younger. Kid knew she dabbled in weaponry and experimenting, much like Medusa but was more successful than her little sister. Kid, threw countless hours of research, discovered a horrible truth about the witch, Arachne.

She was the mother of all human-weapons.

Kid , realizing his father had lied to him again, had gotten into an uproar with his father, who had claimed that he had been the creator. Typical to Lord Death, after realizing that the cat was out of the bag, he released all information blatantly. He unashamedly told Kid and the rest of the academy of the true beginning of the weapons and explained he had been lying to them for generations. It also explained the reason why the witches desperately hated Lord Death.

Arachne, once second hand to the head witch, had changed sides after watching the head witch murder he father and came to Lord Death. Lord Death, new to the rein of God of the world, accepted her with open arms. She proved to be an invaluable help when it came to gaining information about the enemies of Lord Death.

But the one's nature cannot be so easily changed.

She experimented on all sorts of creatures while the Lord Death was busy with the first awakening of the Kishin. She was, despite what others assumed at that point, still loyal to Lord Death. She wanted to become the most important resource to Lord Death. But she went about it wrong. She kidnapped countless witch teenagers with the use of her spiders and experimented brutally and mercilessly on them. She used a soul of a witch and a willing soul of a human and combined them will weapon magic. What she created where the first human weapon hybrids.

It is assumed now, that she loved Lord Death for all that he had done for her. And when her love came back to her after being defeated in a battle with the Kishin and hated what she had created for him, she went insane.

One night she ran from him, leaving all of her experiments behind.

Lord Death read through all of her research. Despite harming people to begin them, Lord Death saw that these experiments could bring peace if used correctly. Arachne had mass-produced these weapon hybrids and went down to change even their genetic structure which caused the trait to pass to future generations. Lord Death knew that in the wrong these weapon-hybrids could cause monumental damage and destruction. So the academy was formed to train these weapons and to give them good meisters. But Lord Death knew that his subjects would never agree to something made by a witch, so he claimed to be the creator, which in turn angered the witches. For they believed he had been the one to kidnap their children.

However, Arachne was not content with letting her old lover take credit for her creations and joined the Kishin determined to defeat Lord Death. But with the help of her experiments, Lord Death managed to defeat the Kishin along with Arachne. But not known to the general populace, Lord Death also loved the witch Arachne. He could not bring himself to destroy her. Instead, he decided to split her into the spiders she clung to and hide them in a jar away from the world.

When the Kishin came into the world, Arachne, with the help of madness, was able to control spiders again. She brought minions to her to draw attention to her location, which would cause the academy to investigate. She knew that her jar would break during the skirmish with her minions and the meisters.

And so the witch Arachne came back into the world determined to rejoin the Kishin to gain revenge against the man who broke her heart.

Maka felt sorry for the witch Arachne. She understood what it felt like to have someone you love not approve of what you were doing. She admitted that what Arachne did was wrong, but what Lord Death did was also wrong. But Maka knew that Arachne know plotted to destroy the balance of the world and needed to be stopped. Still deep in thought, she didn't notice that Giriko had finished his arguing with the butcher and had already paid and decided to leave. Soul nudged her and woke her from her thoughts.

"Maka? He's leaving. Let's go." He started walking toward the door and nodded him head in the direction of their target. Saying nothing, Maka stared at him. He looked at her confused. "You coming?"

_Somewhere, deep down, Soul is part witch. Is that the reason a witch soul makes him powerful? Is it because it awakens the old witch soul that lay in his genes? Is there a chance that weapons could ever feel obligated to join their side? Is it possible that they could use magic? Or is their magic the ability to transform? _Looking at her partner, Maka realized that Soul either hadn't gotten the messages, or he didn't care about where he had come from. She looked into his eyes.

They were red, the color of blood. Countless bodies had been cut open by his weapon form in order to make him stronger and that color always sprayed onto her when that happened. _Do his eyes reflect what his ancestors have done? _She laughed at herself. _I'm being silly. _She looked at her partner, who was now looking down the street at their target. He was waiting for her while trying not to lose sight of Giriko. She laughed at how funny he looked.

"Coming, Soul. Coming." He turned at smiled at her.

_Have his teeth always been that razor sharp?_

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Dun dun dun! Read on, my friends. Read on :) Review, dudes. Byes.


	12. We've Been Fools

You guys are lucky that I have so much time on my hands lately. I've been able to update so much this month, it's crazy. I've been thinking too. I'm pretty sure that this is going to turn into a series. I have a lot of shit to get through and I don't think I'll be able to put it all down in this current plot line. But we'll see. Anyways, read on!

-I'm here to enkindle courage :)

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**We've Been Fools**

_Swift and silent. That's what Tsubaki preached during our brief training. But I don't have the physical stamina or amount of training as Black*Star. I'm going to blow our cover sooner or later because of my loud panting. We either find the hide out soon, or I have to leave it up to them. _Maka ran with the others over the roof tops. Jumping from roof to roof seemed impossible weeks before, but now she was doing it with relative ease. However, fifty roof jumps in one night was a bit much for a beginner. She was tiring and that was dangerous. She still couldn't see Kid or the twins. She couldn't even feel Kid's strong wave length. Though, it was very dark out and if Kid had his soul protect on it made sense why she couldn't see him. The only way she knew she was going the right way was by seeing Black*Star's slight soul wavelength and Soul's hand tight in her own as they ran. It was still amazing how they managed to maneuver so easily together. They were in perfect synchronization. They even seemed to breathe at the same time. And she knew that if she was tired, Soul was barely keeping up but pretended to be fine to be cool.

Suddenly Black*Star halted in front of her and crouched down; they had reached the end of the roof tops and the edge of the city. Medvednica, the mountain range out of Zagreb lay before them. Trees scattered the area in front of them. Giriko could be seen making his way into the forest. If they didn't get down fast, they were going to lose him. Black*Star looked at Maka and gave her a sympathetic look. The roof was low enough for him to jump off of, but not enough for Maka to.

Reading his mind, Maka answered him. "Go. We'll try to keep up. If not, we'll meet back in the hotel." She nodded at him and he nodded in agreement back. As he jumped off the roof she whispered, "Don't get fucking caught, you idiot."

She heard his slight chuckle as he flew down.

She looked at Soul and shrugged. "I have no idea how we can get down without Kid. Ideas?"

"Just one." Soul said.

And then he jumped off the roof.

Frightened at the prospect of him injuring himself, Maka tried to catch him before he fell out of reach. She missed him. She closed her eyes, not wanting to see the impact. Her heart dropped and she prayed he would be okay. All she heard was the slight sound of crashing metal. Confused, she looked down to see Soul, in weapon form on the ground. Quickly, he transformed back into a human.

Stunned she whisper-shouted down at him. "You idiot! You could've hurt yourself if you didn't transform fast enough!"

He grinned at her with his razor teeth. "That's why I didn't tell you what I was going to do, bookworm."

Maka speedily had a craving to throw a giant book at him.

"Now jump. It's close enough that I can catch you."

Flabbergasted, Maka shook her head side to side with wide eyes. Soul grumbled at her and rolled him eyes.

"You're willing to fall from a whole 7 bloody stories up after grabbing on to Asura's robe but you won't jump two floors down into my arms?" She nodded in agreement. "Maka Theia Albarn, you will jump down here right now, or so help me, I will burn all of your books." She glared down at him for using her middle name. She hated it, even though her mother and father liked the idea of naming her after the goddess of light. It sounded weird when spoken out loud, in her opinion. She shook her head furiously down at her. He was surprised that even with him threatening her books, she didn't budge from her perch.

"Listen, I will catch you. I'd never let anything hurt you, Maka. Not even a little fall like this. Don't worry. I won't let you fall. Don't you trust me? Come on. Black*Star is already ahead of us. Or do you really want to admit he's better than you?" He grinned up at her but then frowned when she went out of his sight. Letting out a frustrated groan, he threw his hands in the air. Looking upward, he saw Maka jump from the building.

It seemed to happen in slow motion. Her falling that is. In his eyes, she seemed to sparkle in the moonlight. Her long hair, which was out of its signature pigtails for the sake of being not recognized, flowed upward as she fell. _Only Maka could make falling look graceful. _He was so stunned by the sight; he almost forgot to catch her. But he did, and she landed with a soft grunt in his arms. He had caught her by her lower waist, with her head slightly over his own. He looked up at her to smile and told her 'I told you so' but found her already staring down at him.

Green met red in the moonshine.

The world stopped as he looked up at her. The wind became quiet. Time stood in place. The way he hair cascaded down her shoulders, the slight part in her lips, the faint smile playing on her lip. _Perfect. _

She watched him the whole time she fell. She knew that if anyone would catch her, it would be Soul. He would never let her get hurt if he could do anything about it. Her arms snaked around his neck as he caught her. He stumbled back a foot or two at the impact, but he hardly seemed to notice. All she could do was smile at how clever her weapon- her best friend could be when he needed to be. _He knew that Black*Star comment would make me jump. Bastard. _She smiled to herself and looked down at him. A second later, as if he could tell she was looking at him, he looked up at her.

She really couldn't believe she thought she could be happy without him, **without this. **How could she think that someone else could make her completely happy when he was still around? Despite the world telling her that she should be with Kid, the logical choice, her heart yearned to be with her partner. But she knew that he had Liz. And that she had Kid. _I'm being very foolish right now. _She quickly pushed away any thoughts of being with Soul. She smiled at him and retracted her arms, signalling him to let her go. She took his hand and sped off into the forest.

They had a certain blue haired ninja to follow.

All of her gusto came back to her as she ran; all of her weariness faded and she felt rejuvenated. _Time to finish our mission and get the hell back home. _

Black*Star waited in the shadows with Tsubaki in Ninja Blade as he watched Giriko walk toward the lake in front of him. He stalked from the trees as he followed the man below him. **Black*Star, make sure to watch him closely. He could enter the hideout at any moment. Don't lose sight for a second. ** Tsubaki reminded him in his head. I know. Don't worry, Tsubaki. This God is too big to lose sight of any detail. Even if he's a small one like Giriko. 

They were lucky that they could speak to each other in their minds. It made assassination work easier when they didn't have to speak out loud.

Eventually, the trees began to shorten to the point where it was wiser to stay on the ground instead of the air. He stalked Giriko for a few more minutes before Giriko unexpectedly stopped in front of a large, open field. Black*Star, surprised at the sudden halt, hid behind a tree along the tree line and crouched down. He witnessed Giriko turn around in a circle clockwise three times and then three times counter clockwise and then walk forward toward the field.

He then promptly disappeared.

Black*Star waited for something to happen; a trick or a sudden attack. He remained tense as he sat there. Tsubaki, you saw that right? I was holding you the right way. 

**Yeah, he just ceased to exist. Something is wrong. Can you feel Maka and Soul's presence yet?**

I can feel footsteps a couple hundred feet from us. They should be here in a few seconds. Where the fuck is Kid is a better question though. He seriously is missing out on this. 

**Maybe he's better at stealth than we thought. He could just be flying over us with his skateboard. **

Nah, then he would've helped Maka down from the building. Oh, the steps are louder. They're here.

Maka stopped behind Black*Star, slightly out of breath from her sprinting. Soul panted beside her. She looked around and couldn't see Giriko anywhere.

"You fucking lost him?!" She whispered angrily at him while looking around the area.

"No. He did some weird turns and then disappeared over there." She looked over to where he pointed.

"Soul."

"Yep." Maka walked toward the spot with Black*Star with Soul in weapon form in her hands.

"He did this." Black*Star proceeded to turn 3 times clockwise and then three times counter clockwise and began to walk forward. "Then he just walked strai-"

Black*Star disappeared. Maka could no longer feel his soul wavelength.

"That was kinda cool."

"Shut up, Soul." She turned three times clockwise and then three counter clockwise and walked toward.

She entered through the portal that led to Arachne's hideout. The surroundings seemed similar, if not identical as before. But this time, there was a small house in the middle of the landing. She could see Black*Star standing at the entrance to the home, waiting for her. She jogged over to him and walked inside. Surprisingly, the inside of the home was huge. _The outside probably looks small due to magic_. Maka thought to herself. A giant winding stair case went downward in the middle of the room. Maka looked at where Black*Star was pointing. Giriko had just reached the first turn in the stair case. They were lucky the lighting was poor, or he would have spotted them. Maka glanced downhill; the stairway appeared like it was never ending. It seemed like it would take them an hour climbing down to reach the bottom. Maka inwardly groaned. _It's going to be a very long walk. _

"Soul, no offense, but if I'm walking down stairs with you in my arms, I'm going to get tired. Can you walk?" Sighing, Soul transformed back into his human self and grabbed her hand. She looked at him with a smirk on her face that said 'Want to hold my hand that badly?'. He replied with a look that said 'shut the hell up, it's so I can transform fast and you know it.' . Both fought back the blush that threatened their face. Black*Star, totally oblivious to the two of them had already taken off down the stairs at an alarming rate. Maka and Soul followed in suit.

_I'm never going to complain about jumping roofs ever again if I don't have to run down those stairs again. _Soul thought to himself. _Oh fuck, I have to go back up. I seriously hope we don't have to run though. That took way too long. They need an elevator or something. It's the 21__st__ century not the 13 hundreds. Geesh. _

Maka and Soul stopped to catch their breath when they reached the bottom. Both were and weren't surprised that Black*Star didn't need to catch any breath. _He probably just thinks the stairs are beneath him and not worth his sweat or something. _They both assumed. They glanced at each other and then looked at Black*Star who continued to walk straight ahead with his head through back defiantly. They snickered at his unintentional absurdity. The room at the bottom of the staircase was vacant and curved. The only notable thing was the hallway leading left.

"Soul."

"Mhmm." Transforming into a weapon, Soul sighed. _Thank goodness. I can chill while she walks for me. _

Maka, having heard the sigh from her weapon, giggled. _Soul, you are a lazy bastard. _The waited by the wall of the hallway and listened for footsteps. They seemed far off. Black*Star dashed down the hall with Maka on his tail. The hallway seemed to take as long as the stairs did. But when they reached the end of the hall, they were shocked at what they were seeing.

They were standing in a giant dome, which reminded them of Lord Death's office. Clouds floated on the sky walls but were much darker than what Soul remembered. _Don't the walls in Lord Death's office reflect the current state of the world? Is that what this is? Why are some clouds dark? Is it from the madness? _They were standing on green grass and trees were scattered. It was light out. It made it seem like they hadn't walked underground or that it was night. A castle sat in front of them. It had high walls and turret towers. It seemed to be a castle pulled from the stories of medieval times.

Black*Star began to move forward when Maka grabbed his arm. "Black*Star, the mission was to find the hide out and report it. Let's go."

Black*Star looked at her but continued to walk forward. "My heart is telling me that we have to go inside to see something. I trust my heart more than my head, Maka. It may be the logical thing to go now, but I need to see what my heart is telling me, even if it costs me a little pain." She uncertainly nodded and followed after him.

They crept into the castle silently. If Maka was correct in her study on typical ancient castles, the greater hall was just around the corner from where they currently were. _Where are the guards? Where is Giriko_? Maka thought to herself but continued to follow Black*Star despite her mind telling her to leave quickly. They stood outside the chamber when they heard a conversation. Currently, the speaker was Arachne.

"I thought you said you had them?" Arachne said, sounding annoyed.

"Yes, my lady. When I reported in, I did." Giriko replied to her, sounding slightly confused.

"Where are they?" Arachne questioned.

Maka's eyes opened wide when she felt his presence. She gasped out loud and Black*Star looked at her confused.

"Right now, they're outside the door listening to your conversation."

_No. There's no way. He isn't here. It's a trick. There's no way he's here. I would have felt his presence earlier. _

"Well, come in. We've been waiting for you, children." Arachne sounded amused.

"Why do I know that voice, Maka?" Soul whispered to her. She couldn't answer him. He could feel her shaking. "Maka?"

"Come in here now. Or we'll have to kill you all." Giriko shouted at the doorway which they were standing by. Black*Star signed and marched in, head held high. Soul heard him gasp.

"What the fuck is this?!" Black*Star shouted. Maka, who hadn't moved yet, said nothing to Soul as he continued to tell her to get into the room. Frustrated he transformed and dragged her in himself before transforming back without looking at the people in the room. Soul looked up at Maka. He could tell she was terrified. She looked around the room and discovered why. Sitting on the throne in the middle of the hall sat Arachne. However, there was another chair beside her that was filled.

The Kishin, Asura, sat in the chair.

_Dammit Kid! Where the fuck are you?!_

"Welcome Maka, Soul, Black*Star, Tsubaki." The kishin sneered at them. "You seem surprised I'm here. This underground cave does wonders when it comes to hiding wave lengths. From here, the madness can spread like a disease but the source can't be located. Wonderful Arachne has picked a perfect spot, don't you agree? Oh, you might as well transform out of your weapon forms. They will be of no use."

They knew that they were dead if the Kishin willed it so. It had proven to them that it could hold its own and with Arachne they would be unstoppable. _If Kid was here, we might have had a good chance to escape. All we can do now is bluff. _Soul thought.

Soul transformed and held tightly onto Maka's hand, and tried sending calming waves to her through their bond. She rejected them and pulled herself away. Startled at her sudden hopelessness, he continued to push them forward while he started talking. "The academy is on its way here you know. Death the Kid was with us when we found this place. He went to go fall his father to bring the academies fighters here. It's only a matter of time before this place is surrounded." Soul lied through his teeth. _Fuck Black*Star, if we didn't listen to 'your heart' we couldn't be in this mess. We should've called the academy and left. Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck! _

Arachne smirked at Soul's words but the Kishin took great pleasure from them and started howling with laughter. Giriko joined his laughter. Trying not to seem startled, Soul pressed his bluff on. "You won't be laughing much when Death the Kid gets here with reinforcements!"

Wiping a fake tear, the Kishin finished laughing. Leaning forward, he gripped the arm rests on his throne. "I'm sorry if you don't mind me thinking you're full of shit. It's just that it's not possible for that to be happening." Black*Star seemed unnerved but Tsubaki kept a mean poker face. Soul was unsure how to react. Maka was still the same. _They'll find out soon and then they will know that we are doomed. _She thought to herself. "I mean, reinforcements can't be coming the way you said. We have proof of your error. Here is your proof."

Asura pulled out something from his robes. Two twin guns, dirty and wrapped in barbed wire, stared Soul and the others in the face. The kishin carelessly threw them at the group and laughed. The clattered on the ground in the now silent room. Tsubaki dashed forward and grabbed the pair of them and brought them to her. Soul saw tears stream down her face when she say the conditions of her friends. She carefully untied the wire around them and they immediately transformed back into their human selves. Patty and Liz immediately collapsed to the ground. They had been badly beaten and burned. Their clothes were scorched and ripped. They had been tortured brutally. Black*Star and Tsubaki helped them stand while trying to avoid touching their many cuts and bruises. Liz tried to speak but failed the first time. The second time she did she said, "Guys, they have…"

"Ah now! Don't ruin the surprise, whore." He said cheerfully. The sweetness of his voice made Soul sick to his stomach and he couldn't help but notice Liz wince.

"And here is the rest of the proof as to why your claim is a bunch of shit." The kishin dramatically threw his arms to the side, where shadows were as if unveiling a masterpiece of art.

Out of the black shadows stepped the reason why Maka was terrified; the reason she had stayed silent the whole time; the reason she had given up on being hopeful and courageous.

Death the Kid appeared out of the shadows.

He held a vicious and hateful expression across his face. But it wasn't directed at the enemy of the academy. It was directed at his friends.

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	13. Broken But Whole

Sup guyz. Remember to review :)

-I'm here to enkindle courage

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**Broken But Whole**

Soul stood there in disbelief; completely baffled.

_Kid…betrayed us? _

From the corner of his eye he could see Patty lift her head up long enough to glare at Kid and then spit at the ground.

_We are going to die here. We are going to die. _Only these thoughts ran through Soul's mind at the moment. Their hope for the future; their path of light had left them for the evil of the world.

"You don't look surprised, Maka. You must have felt my presence right away, I assume. Your skills are rather sharp." Kid spoke in his usual calm voice.

Maka refused to meet his eyes.

"Oh come now. Don't you wish to look at your darling boyfriend one last time?" His words were thick in the air; consuming them all. He walked down the steps of the area beside the throne and continued toward them. He casually glanced at his two ex-weapons and shrugged.

"Shame really. If they had joined me, they wouldn't have been so savagely beaten. Stupid, women. They never think rationally. Unlike you, darling." Kid quickly closed the distance between them. Soul put his arm up to protect Maka from Kid's touch and glared at him.

"You bastard. What the fuck are you doing?! What about everyone back home? What about your father? Your friends?" Soul spat venom at the shinigami and stepped toward him.

"My father is fool who can't see the future. Asura has shown me the way to freedom. He has shown me how to make the world perfect and balanced; completely symmetrical. My father is a cripple who can't leave Death City. He's not worth my time any longer. All he does is hold me back. Now, get out of my way, or I'll rip your arms off, little weapon." Kid smiled at Soul and tried to walk to Maka again until Soul stepped in front of him.

"Touch my meister and I will kill you. I don't care if you are my friend. If you touch her, I will destroy you."

"Oh, what's this? So passionate about your meister are you? Maka didn't seem to care when I touched her last night when I fucked her brains out." He pushed Soul aside with eyes, but the force sent Soul to the floor. Kid walked up to Maka and stood in front of her. She was glaring at him, defiantly in his eyes. "Now, Maka, please join me. This will be my only request. Become my lady and we shall rule this world." He held his hand out for her and bowed. It was as if he was asking her to dance, not if she would betray her friends and help destroy the world. Laughing is all that rang through the halls.

Maka had burst out laughing.

"I would rather die first. My loyalty and heart is to my weapon and my friends. Not to some crazy version of you." She said in between her laughs. Kid kept the smile of his face as he walked closer to her.

And then slapped her in the face.

From the floor, Soul could see that he had broken her nose and her cheek was already swelling. _Kid can slap harder than that. He has the potential to kill her._

She continued laughing as the blood ran freely onto her clothes, staining the already dark fabric. Kid turned his back on her and walked back toward the throne. When he turned back around, he still held the pristine smile he had been holding before.

"That was not the logical choice, Maka. Thinking with your heart instead of you head will get you killed. It doesn't really matter if you join me, Maka. You aren't the first whore that I had in my bed. You weren't anything to me ever. Just some play thing to bide my time as I waited for Arachne's signal to trap you here. If you ever believed I held real feelings for you, you must have been delusional." Kid spoke these words quietly, unconfidently. "All you were was someone to fuck with."

Maka felt like a piece of her broke at those words. _All men are the same. All of them. If someone like Kid could fall this far, anyone can fall even farther. _

"Lady Arachne, would you like me to dispose of these children?" Kid turned to look at her. Soul stood and walked back to Maka, whose eyes couldn't be seen. _How will he fight without weapons?_

"Oh yes. Kill them in any way you see fit, Kid." She smiled at him. Everyone was talking sweetly like they were discussing dinner, not murdering Kid's past friends.

"Very well, you make take a running start. Say, five minutes? I do love to hunt my pray while they desperately cling to life. Off you go." Soul watched as Kid pulled two tiny daggers, the size of an envelope opener from his jacket pockets. Holding each handle in one hand, he flicked his wrists slightly. Two giant twin blades appeared in his hands, where the two daggers had been. He glanced back at the group. "I would start running now."

"Patty, Liz, Tsubaki, get into weapon form!" Black*Star shouted. He threw the guns into his pockets and held Tsubaki in his hand. He quickly glanced at Maka. She nodded at him to go. He sped off at an alarming rate. _Someone needs to get away so they can tell the academy where we are. Black*Star may be the better fighter, but he's also the faster runner. He has to go. I have to slow Kid down. _

"Soul, you can still run. I might be able to talk some sense into Kid. But this is probably the end. You should run." Soul gathered his bearings and stood up. Laughing, he walked over to her. He wiped some of the blood off of her face and smiled.

"Remember our promises from the first day? I'm not going anywhere, beautiful." He half smiled at her and grabbed her hand. Maka soon found herself standing with a scythe in her hands. She wouldn't blush at his words now. Not now when everything was falling about around her. She brought up her hand to wipe off the blood from her mouth. She looked down at her hand again, the same hand that shook Soul's on the first day they met."

"It would be hard to forget, Soul." She smiled as she quickly remembered the memory.

"This is the person I am." Maka fully expect to hear a song that was light and hopeful. One that would draw people in and comfort them. One that would make him appear to be the optimal partner choice.

She had been wrong.

She found herself hearing one of the most menacing and unwelcoming pieces of music she had ever heard in her life. This piece of music painted imagines of sadness and hurt in her mind. It was obvious that the boy she was listening to had been suffering for a long time. Her head screamed at her to run far away and to never look back at the wounded soul in front of her; to ignore him and never think of the incident again. But her heart told her to stay, to help the broken and alone soul in front of her. Her heart wanted her to stay and accept him as a person even if he had flaws. What would have driven others away calmly brought her closer to him.

After all, she was just as broken and alone.

She was scarred by her father's betrayal and her mother's departure. She honestly had been looking for a female partner, because _men are not to be trusted. _But this young boy, young man, in front of her had been hurt too. Maybe not in the same way she had been, but that didn't matter at that point.

_Maybe two broken souls can make one complete one. _

She found herself standing behind him. She dodged a few times as his hand came quickly up in the air. This caused her to giggle at him. Eventually, he finished and turned back to her.

"This is the person I am."

His eyes met hers. They were an alarming red. He found that most people would have been frightened off by his blood eyes and snow hair. That is if the menacing music he played hadn't sent them running away first. He expected her to do the same, but found her staring back into his eyes. Unlike the others, the deep red she looked at didn't alarm her. In all honesty, she hated the color red. _It reminds me of Papa._ She would tell herself when she saw the color. But these eyes told her a different story. These eyes weren't the color of someone who was a betrayer but of someone who has been betrayed.

She could see the frightened look that he tried to cover with a cool smile and a laid back posture. But she could still see it. He held a brave face, just as she did most days. But those eyes were the eyes of a person who had spent many sleepless nights thinking about how shitty their life had become; how inadequate they felt in their own skin. He had the same pain in his eyes as she did.

The eyes of the wounded and forgotten.

The color reflected his bleeding soul. Deprived of love and care and forgiveness. She felt her courage swell up as she held out her hand.

"I liked that song. Partners?" The eyes held hers. Slightly narrowed as if wondering if she was joking, ready to pull her hand back within seconds and say 'just kidding' and run from him. But she kept it there, steady and waiting, giving him all the time in the world to think it through. She kept the smile on her face as she waited for him. It was only later that night that she realized it was the first smile she had had in a year.

She learned to smile again because of him.

He took her hand and they shook. He stood up abruptly, which would have caused her to fall backwards if he hadn't grabbed her arm.

He smirked at her. "You're a bit of a clutz, aren't you?" She glared at him and stuck out her tongue. "Soul Eater, scythe."

"Maka Albarn, meister." She smiled back at him as she continued to shake his hand. She barely knew this boy. But soon, he would mean everything to her.

Later that night as the Death City fireworks shone in the sky, she found him standing on the balcony alone. She walked over to him with a tray of food and broke the peaceful silence.

"Hey." He seemed to be in his own world while she stood beside him. Picking up a piece of salmon, she waved it in front of his face. She hadn't liked it, so he could have it. She giggled as she waved it in front of him, while he spaced out. Just as she was about to pull away, his mouth shot forward and bite into the salmon. She could feel his lips against her fingers. Startled, she squealed and pulled her arm back. So fast in fact, she tumbled onto her ass. He stood there, laughing his face off as she sat on the ground. In the end, she joined in the laughing.

"You know, if you keep falling, I'm going to work hard to protect you."

She laughed as he helped her up. "Haha, is that a promise? I might be handful." She smirked and leaned against the balcony. He took her challenge.

"Well, of course it's a promise. Can't let anything happen to my meister. I mean, who else is gunna cook for me?" He laughed as she lightly punched him. She smiled and looked back up at the fireworks.

"Well, I promise to make you into the best death scythe ever!" He smirked at her words.

"Little over-confident are we?" He laughed with her. "Well, then I promise that I'll watch out for my overly confident partner with all of my coolness."

She giggled at the fact they were making promises to each other so early into their partnership. "I promise I'll let you 'protect me with your coolness'." She used air quotes to make fun of him.

"Just don't try to stop me from protecting you; that would be super un-cool. And I am not un-cool." They laughed again before turning their attention back to the fireworks. "I promise to protect you with my life, Maka. Don't ever expect me to turn away from you." He turned briefly red at his words.

She smiled at his words and nodded. "I expect you to always be here, Soul."

The night ended with them watching the fireworks. They found out much about each other. When Soul discovered her dad was **the** death scythe, he almost asked her to get him an autograph. And when Maka found out he was a part of the Evan's family, she almost asked _him _for an autograph.

_We'll have to play around a bit, before… yeah. We have to stall. No attacking, just blocking as long as I can. He usually does only defensive and when we found lost I was offensive. But I will lose quicker if I try to attack him. Hopefully Arachne and the Kishin don't decide he needs help._ Maka and Kid circled each other in the great hall. Both waited for the other to make the first move. Kid let his sword drag against the cobblestone, letting a screech echo around them.

"If you had just listened to your head, everything would have been much simpler." Kid said to her as he matched each of her steps with one of his own as they circled.

"If you hadn't decided to go fucking insane, everything would have been much simpler." Soul shouted at their past friend.

"Maka, darling, we can't circle each other all day. What do you expect to happen? I'll get tired from walking?" Kid smirked at her, trying to get a rise out of her.

"I really don't want to fight you, Kid. I don't know what kind of brain washing Arachne did to you, but can't you try to snap out of it?" Maka spoke softly.

"Maka, you are a fool to think I've been brain washed. If anything, I have been enlightened by knowledge. I won't let my father pull my strings any longer. "Just as Maka was about to answer, Kid struck. Maka had barely enough time to dodge one sword and deflect the other. "You've gotten faster, love."

"I learned from you, Kid." She said, voice pleading with him, trying to make him gain back his humanity.

Kid pushed her back, down the hallway that leads to the room. She tried to hold her ground, but the reapers blade's spun too fast for her to do anything but dodge them. One of the swings just missed her neck, but slicked off a part of her hair. She realized she had become unsymmetrical. _I wonder…_

"Oh no! Kid, I'm not symmetrical anymore! Isn't that horrible?!" Kid momentarily froze. The pause was long enough for Maka to deliver a strong kick to his stomach that sent him flying yards back. He seemed to take his time getting up.

"Maka, Black*Star has probably made it up by now. We should run while we can!" Soul's naked reflection shone at her from the blade of the scythe.

"But—"

"Shut the hell up and run before he gets close again!" Soul shouted desperately at her. _Stop being so fucking stubborn and do what I say for once. Fuck!_

It wasn't long before Kid was able to attack her again. She had made through the dome and to the end of the hall and was slowly backing up against the stairs while blocking his attacks.

"Trying to gain high ground? Good strategy!" Kid shouted at her as he continued to swing at her. Maka could feel small dents begin to form in Soul's weapon form. She could tell he was stopping himself from crying out as he was being used to block. _I have to stop using Soul or he's going to get hurt again! _

Maka began dodging Kid's swords with all of her might but shallow cuts were beginning to form all over her body. He managed to cut off more of her hair, making it symmetrical again.

"There, perfect. Now let me just cut your throat symmetrically and be done with this fight. You're lucky you can dodge, Maka. Or you would be dead by now." Kid sneered at her as he continued to strike at her. As Maka walked backwards, she recalled seeing and crack in the steps a few feet behind her. _If I strike it with enough force, maybe the stair will collapse and break! It might startle him enough for me to throw him over the edge!_ She slowly continued backwards, trying to block with Soul as little as possible. She was weakening and Kid could tell.

"Stupid, bitch. Just let me fucking kill you."

A few more steps.

Maka quickly jumped back and slammed the butt end of Soul against the crack. The stair gave way and caused a little distance between her and Kid. He looked at her completely amused.

"That's not going to stop me. All I have to do is jump over." He laughed and jumped into the air. Just like Maka had been expecting. It was the exact same scenario when they fought in front of Professor Stein. She crouched down and let him jump. Then, bringing up the sharp part of Soul instead of the end part, Maka swung at Kid with all of her might and connected.

Blood splashed at her and his face looked shocked. The wound wasn't deep, but the force of the impact sent him over the edge of the stairs, causing him to fall over the side. Maka let out a breath that she didn't know she was holding and looked downward. Kid was still falling. _We're up higher than I thought. Death. Kid, you idiot. _

"Don't worry, Maka. He's a reaper. The fall won't kill him. Now let's go!" Soul transformed and started dragging her up the stairs. She could see all of the cuts over his body and the limp in his leg. _But at least we're alive. Black*Star, you better have reached Lord Death right now. _

Kid hit the ground with a bang and groaned. Arachne and Asura made their way slowly to him. Asura snarled at him. "Amateur! I'll go after them!" He shouted, preparing himself to fly up after them.

"No, idiot. If you do that, everyone who has soul perception will know you're here. Same with you Arachne and Giriko. Everyone will be looking for our signatures! We can't leave here. All we can do is gather the army and prepare for the academy." Kid stood, the shallow cut nearly healed. The only evidence of his cut was the slash on his shirt. "Besides, I broke Maka's spirit. We have nothing to fear from that bitch. She was the only one capable of defeating us."

Kid laughed, but it rang empty in the dark corridors of the underground chamber.

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	14. Secrets in the Dark

Thanks for reading guys! Here's your next chapter. Remember, the more reviews, the more chapters you get :)

-I'm here to enkindle courage.

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**Secrets in the Dark**

They fled like rats in the night.

They ran from the being that destroyed their only hope for the future.

Liz and Patty were badly injured, but stopping at a hospital could have them all killed if they decided to come after them. They stopped at a grocery quickly to get gauze to wrap their wounds and cover their purple bruises. But without proper material, their soul wavelengths were weakening. Soul asked them if they could hold their weapon forms for a day while they traveled back to safety. They reluctantly agreed.

Soul knew the pain of having to stay in weapon form when injured, but it would stop them from bleeding out and succumbing to their wounds while they couldn't get them help. They got on an express plane for weapons and meisters in danger that made travel time cut in half from what it would be. They were no longer worried about being seen. They needed to get back to Death City so they could be saved and heal.

Black*Star was surprise attacked by Arachne's monster spider minions when he reached the dome outside and was barely able to fend them off. He was hit by their fangs and a poison took to his blood. He had felt his movements become slower and slower as the poison took hold of him. But he ran on, determined to get to a mirror to send a message to Lord Death. He made it in time to relay the majority of it before he froze up and fell unconscious. Tsubaki transformed and frantically asked Lord Death for help. HE assured her that the spider's bite wasn't fatal; it would only freeze the body of its target. Black*Star would be unable to move for around 2 hours. However, due to Black*Star's 'I'm a fucking god, nothing can keep me down!', he sprung back to life within forty minutes. _Even though he's an idiot. He's a touch son of a bitch. _

Lord Death didn't say anything after he heard the news of Kid's betrayal. He was quiet behind his mask, which was always expressionless. Spirit, who had been crying because of Maka being hurt, disappeared from view after he heard what Black*Star had said. Lord Death just solemnly nodded and turned his back on them. He said he first aid would be waiting for their arrival. He explained he would send scouts out to assess the situation. The army was going to be gathered and they would attack before Arachne and the Kishin could move their base.

Soul held the twin guns tight to his body and tried to ease their comfort on the flight. He had to stay strong for the others. He felt like a coward though. _Running from them like we're vermin fleeing an exterminator. _ He scowled at himself. _I can't be thinking like this right now. _

Black*Star was busy trying to get Tsubaki to stop crying silently to herself. _I've never seen her like this before. The betrayal of Kid must hurt like if he was dead. She won't even tell Black*Star to shut the hell up. But I guess he is being quieter than normal and no one else had asked him to settle down. _

Liz and Patty were quiet. He couldn't tell if they were trying to keep their physical pain in or trying to keep their emotional pain of being severed from their meister from killing their hearts.

Maka had yet to cry. Or to get angry. Or to show any emotion. She just stared blankly ahead, eyes void of thought. _It was he boyfriend… and the way he talked to her. Saying she meant nothing to him… I can't imagine how broken she feels right now. I don't even know how to comfort her. What do I say? "Sorry you boyfriend became a traitor?" What the fuck do I do? _

Soul sat beside her on the flight trying to figure out a way to get her to do _something. _Anything, really. He'd even let her do a Maka-chop on him a hundred times if she was willing to show emotion. He had expected her to at least cry. Maybe a tiny one when she thought he wasn't looking, but her eyes were like a dry river bed; no trace of water in sight. Or he thought she would get angry. _Being called tiny tits threw her into a fit, but being called a whore? Why hasn't she freaked out about that? She had… she did… ugh. How could she just let him use her like that?! _Soul began to feel anger, but knowing his keen partner might begin to feel it, he quickly forced it disperse. _I'll just beat the shit out of Kid when I see him next. _

He knew he had to do something. He had to bring her back to the living world; back to him. He just didn't know how to do it with words. So he just let the silence fill the air between the two. It engulfed them and made their minds think on the tragedy that had occurred. Soul could feel his partner's connection, even if she had severed most of it. _She may look like she wants to be alone but maybe she doesn't want to totally be alone. Maybe I can't help her with words, but maybe I can help another way. _

He stretched his consciousness out to her and tried to join wavelengths. He allowed himself to be pulled into the black room where his demons hide. But there was no time to address his own; he had to talk some sense into his meister. He had to fix her. He dragged her consciousness in, forcibly. She tried to deny it, her soul screaming at him the whole way.

"Leave me alone, Soul!" She tried to pry her arm free from his grasp, to allow herself to go back into her own conscious, but his grip was of iron.

"I'm not going to let you shut yourself up all alone, Maka. I can't let you be stupid." He growled at her, voice low and husky. Eventually, she gave up trying to fight his pull on her conscious. She allowed herself to be pulled from her mind and into his as they resonated souls.

She opened her 'eyes' to find herself standing in the black room within Soul's mind. He was wearing his black pin-striped suit and red shirt. His white hair shone in the darkly lite room and his eyes were a light in the dark. In this room, she allowed herself to think he was handsome. Anyone would. He was the only thing she could depend on, maybe that was why she found his so utterly attractive right now.

He sat waiting for her on the couch facing her. She sighed in defeat and shuffled toward him slowly, knowing it made no sense to try to run now. She heard the fabric of her dress rustle as she walked toward him and sat down on the couch. She kept her eyes on the ground, not looking at him. They sat in silence for a while before Soul spoke.

"Maka…" He trailed off, not quite sure how to talk to her. _If I wanted to talk, I could have done so on the plane. I brought her here not to speak. Why am I talking? _Soul closed his eyes and felt their connection. He reached out to touch her soul but she kept backing away from him. He opened his eyes.

"Maka let me help you, dammit it. I'm not going to let you leave until you let me." He mumbled to her, hoping she would actually let him do it with little persuasion. He closed his eyes again and tried to touch her soul. This time, she backed a little but hesitantly stopped retreating from him. She allowed his soul to touch hers and wrap her in his own warm embrace. She felt the calming waves encirclement her and warm her back to life. She felt good and happy, wrapped in his wavelength. She felt protected and need. She didn't feel dirtied by Kid anymore.

She opened her 'eyes' to find herself hugging him in the black room. Tears freely fell from her eyes and landed on his suit but he didn't seem to mind. _It's a fake one anyway; it's just in our mind._ She hugged him harder as she let the tears she had been holding back flow freely. _He said I didn't mean anything to him. That I was a plaything. That I was just a whore. I thought he loved me. I thought I loved him. Why did he do this? I don't understand. I don't understand anything anymore. _

He slowly rubbed her back with his right hand and buried his left hand in her hair. _Even here her hair smells like vanilla. Unbelievable. _He continued to send reassuring and calming waves to her but they weren't completely getting through. She sobbed until she felt completely empty. But she kept her death grip on him. She wanted to stay like this forever. To hide from the world until the end of eternity with him did not seem like a bad choice. Eventually, her soul accepted his waves entirely and she felt herself calm down.

She pulled away from him and smiled. He reached up to wipe away the tears still left on her face. And took her chin between his fingers.

"Better?"

"Yeah. Thanks, Soul." She felt relief flood through her and laughed. "I was being stupid. He doesn't define who I am. Thanks for being here. I have no idea what I would do without you." She mumbled into his shoulder as he stroked her hair. _At least I have you, Soul. I've always had you. And you'll always have me too. _

"Anytime, Maka." _One day, I'll make you forget all about this. I'll make you happy again, Maka. I swear I will protect you from him. Always. _

She smiled as she withdrew from her share of the soul resonance. "I'm going to go now. Kay? I have a novel to read." He nodded and she disappeared from his sight. He slouched back into the couch and let out a shaky breath. Only then did his demon appear.

"Well, Soul. That was quite touching. How very un-cool of you." He sneered from the record player as he put some jazz on.

"I will only ever be un-cool, for her." Soul put his hands behind his head and smiled. "Only for her."

The demon started cackling. "But you know you're going to lose her to him, right? Eventually, she will be bought out by him if you don't become stronger, Soul. She will leave you." He cackled again. "But I can make you stronger, Soul. Just give yourself to me and I can make you strong. You won't be able to protect her in your current form, kid."

Soul rolled his eyes at his demon. "Dude, you aren't going to scare me into using black blood. Seriously. You might as well give up on that dude. It's really un-cool."

"I'm not talking about black blood, Soul. I'm talking about something already inside you that I can show you how to get it."

Soul glanced at the demon. "Yeah and why would you do that? From the goodness of your heart? Please. You're just wasting my time." Soul got up to walk through the door he came, back to the airplane and back to Maka.

" But it **is **out of the kindness of my heart. Because you will die without my help, Soul. Asura or Arachne or Kid will finish you off in that sad and pathetic state. You could barely block Kid's playful blows without crying out. You will die if he becomes serious with you. And if that happens, I die too. It's all about self-preservation. And this will make you more powerful than anything alive. It is after all, in your blood, your real blood. It's been in your family for generations. Yours was the first after all. I'm surprised Lord Death didn't tell you. He must have been too shocked to see you. There hasn't been a weapon in the family for hundreds of years. You can become powerful, Soul. You have it in you already."

Soul's head snapped toward the demon and narrowed his eyes. "What?"

Lord Death stood in his chambers with the death scythes. Since the location of the kishin had been found, everyone was to gather. All of the death scythes _and _their old partners were to arrive at the academy in the morning. These men and woman had been shaped by battle and would turn the tide when the following battle would take place. Still, Lord Death was deeply disturbed by the betrayal of his son and was becoming increasingly less confident on the strength of the academy. _Kid… how could you? _No. He wouldn't allow himself to be overcome by human emotions. He was a shinigami, the ruler of the world, not a human. _Kid had the capability to murder Maka and Soul in one swipe. I've seen him with duel blades… he is much better with them than even his guns. There is no way he could have battled that long. And he was never one to 'play' with opponents. Either that changed when he betrayed us, or…. And besides, Kid should have been able to deal with them and then easily chased after Black*Star on his skateboard. I would know, I was the one who made it to be the fastest means of transportation on earth. Even if Black*Star is fast, he has no hold on Kid when Kid is seriously fighting. _

_All of this leads me to the assumption that Kid was not seriously fighting them; he __**wanted **__them to escape. _

_Does that mean a trap is waiting for them in the underground sanctuary? Or does that mean something else. Son, you are crafty and clever. Much more than I ever was. I was always brute strength and force. You are something that was born in shadow though. Maybe it was from being around __**her **__when you were growing up. It was so long ago, you were still in the beginning stages of the shinigami cycle, I doubt you can even fully remember. Even though you appear to be 17 or 18 now, your age is many hundreds of years more than that. You have lived many human life cycles already and twin blades were your first weapons. You should not have failed so easily. Not that I'm complaining. Maka and Black*Star will be the best weapon meisters that have passed through these halls. _

Lord Death sighed. _This is getting complicated. _He was starting to go in circles. _None of this makes sense. In all scenarios, Kid should have __**won. **__Period. If he didn't, it was because he chose to lose. But why?_

"Lord Death, I came as you requested." Stein entered the room and bowed to Lord Death.

"Yes. You were with Kid as he was recovering from the attack from Arachne, yes?"

"Yes, sir." Stein lite a smoke and took a puff.

"Was there anything strange about Kid when he came back?"

"That is also what I thought, Lord Death. After hearing about Kid's betrayal, I went through all the notes I took. I neither remember nor wrote anything down that made Kid seem different. It must have happened when they were at the capital. So why would he lie to Maka about waiting for Arachne's signal? It doesn't add up sir. You son is clever, but his story is hardly convincing. Even his partners were completely thrown off guard."

"Yes, Liz and Patty said that when Arachne asked him to join, he froze for a moment. Just a moment. And then accepted. They said it was as if he had agreed to go for dinner with her, not to join her to destroy the world."

"And when Liz spoke out against him, he just back handed her like it was nothing. She was sent flying into a pillar. If Kid had used his full strength, he could have killed her. If he was going to betray them, what not kill her? I don't understand. Kid must have some sort of plan in his mind. Maybe it was to send fear into our hearts. We are extremely fortunate that he hasn't awoken as a full shinigami yet. If he had, he would be able to destroy the Kishin, Arachne and us with ease. Your son, if I can be frank..-"Lord Death nodded. "..is exceptionally more powerful than you are, my lord. As a full shinigami, he would have the power to defeat the entire world within seconds. Right now, he stands a fair chance at doing that if he tries to. So it leads me wondering why he hasn't done so already. You son has struck fear, even in to me, sir. These are dark times." Stein finished his smoke and lit another. "The madness is also getting worse. I think Kid, on some level, had been fighting against it in this place without knowing it. His pure soul had driven it from the areas where he had been. But since he is gone, madness is creeping into our city like the plague. Even the rats feel it. I'm not sure how long I will be able to last before falling to my darker ambitions. We must act and we soon."

"The army will set out within the month. We just need everyone to get there at the same time, so they aren't surrounded. We'll need many ships to do that. We have a big task ahead of us. But we will be ready. Hopefully the students will be healed in time to join us. They may be able to change Kid back."

"With the help of myself and others, they should be physically recovered in time. Though mentally…" Stein trailed off and made to leave. "I will see you tomorrow, goodnight Lord Death."

Lord Death could hear the faint footsteps of Stein as he looked around the walls of his room. The light was fading from the blue skies and the clouds have become black. _The madness is here. I wish I still had the soul to keep it away. _Lord Death sighed again.

_This has gotten quite complicated._

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Remember to review. The more reviews, the faster the update! :) Byez


	15. Trying for Nothing

Hey guys! Thanks for the reviews. They mean a lot :) They make me happy. Review some more and you'll get another chapter.

-I'm here to enkindle courage.

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**Trying for Nothing**

Wind howled from outside of her window while she lay awake in the darkness. It was during those times when she would _think _about things.

She hated thinking these days.

It had been three weeks since Kid abandoned them. The army of meisters and weapons had difficulty assembling. It was too soon after the Kishin battle the night he was released. No one was prepared. No one was fully healed. No one was strong enough to face the challenge ahead. Death City was still in ruins but construction had been halted to prepare for the battle. Some streets were still closed because of the giant craters in them. Finding a way to transport everyone to Zagreb would be too difficult with the means they had now. Lord Death was currently in meetings with carpenters, engineers, mechanics and the like trying to figure out how to more three thousand people across the world at the same time.

While that had been going on, there had been much to do for the academy. Pre-kishin's were popping up all over the world more frequently than before. Almost everyone was always on a mission to kill them. Maka and Soul had collected 30 souls in ten days. Even Black*Star and Tsubaki managed to actually get a lot. Maka and Soul stood on the top of their class, like always, with 97 kishin souls while Black*Star and Tsubaki stood behind them in second at 82 souls. Soul and Tsubaki would soon be Death Scythes if they managed to get witch's souls. Maka had been looking at those missions the other day and they were currently preparing to take the fight to her. Maka assumed that she could make Soul a Death Scythe within a few weeks. But the problem was that they didn't have a few weeks. They were being sent on a scouting mission to prepare for the rest of the army's arrival in a few days. They had rushed to make a Death Scythe but it had been all for not. Two pre-kishins and one witch was all that stood in the way of a better chance of fighting Kid, Arachne and Asura. They weren't prepared. They had gotten stronger, very fast, but not close to being strong enough.

But that wasn't what she wanted to think about. She wouldn't allow herself to think that they weren't ready; that she wasn't ready. If she put up the visage that she was prepared, others would feel strength from her. She couldn't show weakness. She allowed the rage to build in her; the anger of his betrayal to give her strength. Soul, in her eyes, was faltering. She could tell the madness was affecting him badly or something was, at least. He hesitated in training, with his wavelength like he was afraid of letting her see the whole soul. It was as if he had something to hide. _Which is ridiculous to think, Maka. Soul isn't hiding anything. Soul won't betray you. He's just nervous and you're being paranoid. _

She lost count how many times she forced that thought into her mind. But she could tell that Soul was changing. Everyone was. Since Kid's betrayal, everyone seemed disheartened; even Black*Star.

Hope was fading faster than the sunlight in the madness.

She knew, even if no one told her, that she was the face of bravery in the academy. She was the one people looked to for guidance and reassurance. Kid's girlfriend was betrayed and attacked by him, yet here she was, attending school and trying to get stronger. They would watch her in the halls, desperate for her to wear the calm and confident face that they needed.

She made sure to practice it in the mirror every day.

About a week ago, she finally confronted Soul on his weird behavior. She stopped him before he could disappear into his room for the day. She wanted to know why he hesitated in battle, why he was holding back and why he was hiding from her. Every time she asked before, he would lie to her and dodge the question. He didn't seem to realize that she knew what his lying face looked like, even after being together for five years.

"Maka, I'm just…worried that we won't be prepared for the battle." He hesitated talking to her. "I just hope the army can be put together fast."

She raised an eyebrow at him. "Soul, you're being un-cool. What the hell is going on with you?" She tried to get a rise out of him, but she didn't get a reaction.

"I'm just saving my strength, Maka. I don't want to risk getting hurt or you getting hurt. We are going to be the only ones, other than Black*Star and Tsubaki, who stand a chance against Kid or the Kishin, even if we aren't Death Scythes. I mean, Stein has been locked up because of the madness and your father can't be wielded by anyone else right now. We're the only chance the academy has. We just need to be…careful."

"That doesn't explain why you've been locking yourself in your room every day after school until dinner and then going back and hiding. Did I do something wrong?" She showed the hurt on her face, which caused Soul to panic on the inside. _Shit. I can't let her find out what I've been doing. But I obviously can't keep doing in my room so often. But man, I might not be ready when the time comes if I don't do it all the time. _

"Oh, that?" Soul flashed his best everything-is-totally-cool-and-you're-worrying-for-nothing smile he could manage. "Black*Star lent me his copy of Fall Out: New Vegas. I've been obsessed with it." He laughed shallowly and looked the other way.

"But when you play your games, I can hear them from my room… All that comes out of your room is either your jazz music or silence." She looked at him, not believing him for a second.

"Didn't I tell you about the sick mic I bought for it? It hooks up to the tv and console and then plays through my headphones. So I don't need the tv volume on!" This was actually true. Soul had spent $130 on the headphones few months ago after Maka Chopped him into oblivion for playing too loudly too late on a school night.

She looked at him, still not believing him. _Why won't he tell me? _Deciding that he wasn't going to give up his secret, Maka shook her head and left him in the living room and left to go to the kitchen to grab a snack. _Whatever, keep your secrets. _But before she could get away, Soul called her back.

"Maka, wait… Can I ask you something? It's been bugging me. And I should probably already know the answer but I can't figure it out and I know I shouldn't ask but damn it all, I need to. I need to know how you do it all the time while everyone else can't and it's driving me bonkers and…" He was rambling. Maka just stood, waiting for him to run out of breath for her to speak.

"What do I do, Soul?" She leaned against the door frame and waited for his brain to catch up with his words.

"How… How can you walk around so… normally? You act like Kid hasn't betrayed us. If anything, you've been getting stronger. He… betrayed you, Maka. It would make sense if you were like Liz and Patty! They haven't even spoken since it's happened. How can you stand it? How can you not give up, Maka? I mean, it's even hard for me to get up in the morning. All I can think about is how doomed we are. But then I see you and… you have no idea how much faith I put into you, Maka. You have so much courage, Maka. You're the only thing I get up for in the morning because you are so confident. Everyone always talked about how strong you were but it shouldn't have lasted this long. It's like you're totally fearless! How do you do it, Maka? I mean, it's not a bad thing! It's completely amazing. I mean you usually are amazing but this is crazy! What I mean to say is how do you do it, Maka" He paused and caught his breath. _Okaaaay. So that came out way too fast and probably confused her. Did I call her amazing? Oh shit. Maybe she didn't notice? Fuck. Should I say it again? Will she answer me?_ Soul's train of thought continued to change tracks.

She answered him with a smile. It was so slight that he almost missed the corners turn upward. "I know that I have to, Soul. Don't think it's easy. It's not by any means. But anyone can give up; it's the easiest thing in the world to do. I could easily become like Liz and Patty and break down. I could give up and accept our defeat. But to hold it together when everyone else would understand if you fell apart, that's true strength. You said I was strong before, but how can a person be strong if there is nothing to test them? I don't look down on you, Soul, for feeling like this. I don't, not on anyone. But the fact you still struggle against our impending doom shows that you have strength too." She walked toward him until she was within arm's reach. "I mean, I don't try my hardest to have courage by forgetting fear. I don't really think that courage is the absence of fear… it's more like knowing that something else is more important than fear. And my want to protect everyone is much more important than fear. And—"She's cut off my being smashed into, Soul's arms. He holds her there, tightly.

_I knew there was a reason why I love her so fucking much. Only Maka, my Maka, could say something so ridiculous that it warms even my black-blooded heart and calms me. _He holds her in his tight embrace and inhales her scent. He never wants to let her go. _I will protect you, Maka. You've managed to carry me this far and I'm damn well going to be strong enough to carry you when you need it. I will master this…thing and protect you._

She accepts the hug warmly at first. She basks in his scent and the calming presence. She can hear his heart beating just as fast as hers. _I… Thank you, Soul. Thanks for believing in me. _She enjoys her guilty pleasure of being in his arms, feeling his muscles squeeze her hard. She can feel his hard chest under her fingers as he pulls her into him more and more. However, doubt and fear starts to creep back into her heart. She was being reminded of the thoughts of Kid's touch, Kid's warmth. She had trusted him and he betrayed her. She bit back tears that threatened to fall. _Forget this. This can't be in my mind right now. _

She pulled back from Soul and managed a weak smile. She nodded and then headed back to the kitchen. _This is no time for feelings; not when so much is riding on our choices. _She heard Soul close his bedroom door and she sighed. _Nothing is going to change. Not right now. _

Maka found herself back in her bed after remembering that memory. _I have to stop. These memories can't be allowed to come into my head so easily. I need to sleep. It's almost eleven, I should be sleeping. _She closed her eyes and willed herself into sleep. Unfortunately, it was not a pleasant sleep.

She woke up, heart hammering at a forgotten nightmare. She had woken herself with her own scream. _What was that about? _She sat up and swung her legs over her bed and put her head in her hands. _I was running from something and I think it caught me. What the hell was it? The kishin? Arachne? Kid? _She breathed outward. _Maybe it was my father. _She smirked at the thought. Her father chasing after her was **quite**the nightmare. The thought made her heart beat slow down a little.

_I'm not going to be able to fall asleep anytime soon. How the hell am I going to keep on the brave face for everyone if I look like I can't sleep? Death. _She glanced at her clock; red numbers flash 12:57 in her face. Sighing, she decided that trying to sleep will get her frustrated and cause her not to sleep even more. _Maybe I can watch an episode of something and then go to sleep. _

She wanders into the living room, only to find her partner sitting in the middle of the couch with the tv on. However, he doesn't seem to be watching it. He is just staring at the ceiling, deep in thought.

"Soul? What are you doing up?" She asked curiously as she gradually made her way toward him on the couch.

He shrugged, still looking up at the ceiling. "Could ask you the same."

Maka's eyes drifted unconsciously to the floor, "I couldn't sleep," she admitted with a shrug of her own.

Unknown to her, Soul's expression softened in understanding._ I heard the scream. She probably had a nightmare of her own._ He leaned his head back to gaze at the ceiling, "Neither could I."

He nodded for her to join him on the couch as he shifted himself over a little to make room. She sat down right beside him, with her arms touching his. Physical contact, now a days, brought more peace to them than any words seemed to. They just liked knowing the other was there for them. Leaning back her head against the couch, she also gazed at the ceiling, unknowingly staring at the same spot as her partner.

"Wanna tell me about it?" Soul asked quietly, as to not wake Blair, who was sleeping in the corner of the living room in her bed.

"Talk about what?" She asked while trying to keep her heart beat down from their contact.

"I heard the scream, Maka. I think everyone in the building did." He took a deep breath and let it out as he slumped further into the couch trying to get comfortable.

"I don't really remember it. I just remember I was being chased and I was terrified. I think it caught me and that's why I screamed. I'm not sure." She paused for a moment. "What about you? You love sleep and the only time you aren't is when you have something on your mind."

She heard the sharp intake of air from him and the shift that said he was uncomfortable with the question. She pursed her lips. "What was it about? You can tell me, Soul." She put her hand on his thigh, trying to comfort him. She heard a mumble. "What? I didn't catch that." Another mumble. She sighed. "Soul Eater Evans, you will tell me right this instance in a volume I can hear."

He groaned at her insistence. "We were fighting Kid and he kept attacking you with his blades. Every time you blocked with me, the pain was searing and horrific. Eventually, I couldn't handle it anymore and transformed into a human, prepared to have him kill me so you had time to get away but you…." He took a deep breath. "You shoved me out of the way and he…killed you." He closed his eyes and let out a breath. _Why was that so vivid? I have messed up dreams. _"I'm so worried that you're going to do that the next time we fight him. You are an idiot like that sometimes." He tried to laugh, but it came out sounding like a cough.

Maka's face softened and she looked at Soul. She noticed the slight bags under his eyes and the sweat on his brow. _This really scared him. What the hell do I do? _She paused for a moment and then she decided. _It may make him uncomfortable, but it's worth the risk if he feels better. _Maka calmed herself and then sat in Soul's lap. He was startled at first, but she then wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him. She rubbed his back with her left hand and her right hand found itself in his hair, massaging his head.

"Soul, I'm not going anywhere. I'm right here." She waited for his form to relax in to her, praying she hadn't made a mistake by climbing into his lap to hug him. Thankfully, he didn't reject her hug. He wrapped his arms around her waist and leaned his forehead against her shoulder. Everything was still as they sat there, cuddling. Both too comfortable to move.

"I know, Maka. But that doesn't mean I don't worry. I'm terrified to lose you. You mean way too much to me, so don't die. Kay?" She smiled against his neck. "Besides, looking for a new partner would be totally un-cool." She giggled at his attempt to lighten the mood. He smiled into her shoulder. They both held back blushes that threatened to burst through.

"Don't worry, Soul. I don't plan on leaving you anytime soon." She paused. "Besides, who could get you up for school other than me?" He grimaced inwardly. The morning Maka-Chops were something he could live without. But if being with Maka came with the Chops, he could handle them. For her.

_It's amazing how one boy-one man can change my mind about all men. Maybe they aren't all the same. If this nightmare scared him so badly for him to be like this, I must mean more to him than I thought. I know he must feel a sense of duty for me, but nightmares? Is it more than duty? _

_Do I feel more than duty to him?_

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Thanks for reading! Remember to review and favorite! :)


	16. Tomorrow Won't Be Kinder

I've had major writers block. Sorry :S Here's your new chapter! :D Review please :)

-I'm here to enkindle courage.

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**Tomorrow Won't be Kinder**

"You've gotten a lot better at this, dudes." Black*Star whispered from his side of the rooftop toward Maka. She could see Tsubaki nod in agreement in the darkness. Soul squeezed her hand in agreement.

"Well, we have been fucking practicing this for days." She shot back; slightly bitter at the fact they had wasted so much time learning how to blend in the shadows._ We aren't bloody assassins. Why were we sent on this?_ No one was surprised Maka had sworn, since the incident, she had become less naïve and matured. Though Soul, on the inside, disliked this new side of Maka, he preferred the naïve partner who wouldn't swear loudly at him when he fucked up.

But this war was going to change everyone on some level. It had already affected those closest to Kid.

The twins woke from their state of distress and became something… else. Patty, who used to only wear her scary face to get her way, had a permanent scowl on her face that screamed hatred. Tsubaki, in an attempt to bring the old Patty back, brought her a stuffed giraffe to make her happy back before they left for the scouting mission.

Patty glanced at it and nodded. She then went back to her punching bag that had the picture of Kid on it.

Liz, who Soul was honestly worried about, changed almost entirely. The girl who used to blow off training to do her nails had been long forgotten. She, unlike her sister however, still talked to the others but it was different than before. Her voice was confident and straight forward. Soul could tell that the Liz before had also lost her naïve outlook on life and become a grown up. She took her training seriously and now rivals Soul in transformation speed. A few days ago she all together broke off her relationship with Soul. She had told him that she was too worried about Patty and Kid to continue their relationship. He had agreed with her, not feeling any particular emotion toward the break up. He had expected it after three weeks of not talking.

Patty proved to be an excellent substitute weapon meister. She ruthlessly sparred with Maka and Black*Star and held her own ground. She showed her strength and flexibility in blocking their blows and attacks. She was no Kid, but she held strong against the other Meisters. Stein was so impressed with her performance he recommended them for the scouting mission as well. Lord Death, at first, was reluctant to allow them to go on the mission, fearing they would lose heart if they had to fight Kid. However, Patty brutally explained her quest for revenge against Kid. She was determined to hurt the man who almost killed her friends. Maka was seriously impressed with her loyalty and determination.

Crona who heard about Kid's betrayal rushed to the group before their departure for the mission. He explained that he and Ragnarok had spent weeks debating about joining the others in the scouting mission or going with the main force. Ragnarok surprisingly was enraged at Kid's betrayal and encouraged Crona to join the scouting mission so they could get revenge for their friends. The group was surprised by Ragnarok's words and Crona's confidence. They explained they had gone to Lord Death and asked for his permission to join the battle. Lord Death, pleased by Crona's courage to ask, allowed him to take part.

Soul took the time to _really _look at Crona in those few moments while he spoke hurriedly. Soul remembered a pale kid who could barely look people in the eye and would cross his arms over his body in an attempt to comfort himself. That wasn't the same person Soul was looking at right now.

Crona was…different.

Crona had shed his past clothing for what seemed to be black leather armour. Ragnarok was sheathed in his belt and would talk through his sword lips instead of forming himself on Crona's back. When Maka asked about why he was in weapon form, he simply replied that it wasn't fun to beat on a kid that would hit back. This news seemed to shock everyone. All they got out of Crona was a slight smile.

_What exactly happened while we have been gone, Crona? _Maka thought to herself after looking at her friend. The shy nervous kid had been replaced by a more confident young man. _Maybe Medusa used to do something that would make him like that all the time. He's been surrounded by us for a few months and maybe we wore off on him. _Maka smiled to herself. _Yeah. That's it. _She watched Crona as he joined the group. His head was up and his eyes were wide open and alert. She pulled him aside.

"Hey Crona! I missed you." She smiled at him.

"I missed you too, Maka." He nodded at her. _Has he always been taller than me?_

"So who gave you that cool outfit?" This was the first time she had seen Crona _really _blush at a question.

He broke eye contact with her and stammered. "It was uh… Ms. Marie. She said… said that my robe wouldn't help in battle. I told her my black blood was already my armor but she said…said that this would make me look…uh…older and yeah." He rubbed his arm while avoiding looking at Maka. _There's the old, Crona. _She smiled at him.

"It _does_ make you look older! When did you start standing up to Ragnarok? I mean, a few weeks ago you seemed terrified of everything especially him." His eyes looked back into hers.

He half smiled at her. "Well while you were gone, Sid thought that I would be lonely. He took me on a few missions so I could get everything together. He taught me that it was okay to be scared if you didn't allow it to consume you. He kinda reminded me of you, Maka. I realized that Ragnarok, despite his beliefs, is an extension of myself—" A mutter from Ragnarok broke his sentence. Crona put his hand on the hilt and the mumbling stopped. "I may not be able to control his words but I can control his actions and my reactions. He finally saw me as a person instead of a punching bag." He laughed. "I actually would call us friends now."

"Yeah, yeah, stop being so fucking mushy dude. Let's go join the others. Damn." Ragnarok complained causing Maka to giggle.

"I'm sure Tsubaki will give you some candy for that Ragnarok!" She laughed as they walked toward the others. A happy yell came from the demon sword and Crona.

And so here they were. The five of them stood around on a rooftop in Zagreb with Liz, Tsubaki and Ragnarok in their weapon forms. It had been four days since their arrival and they had watched as Arachne's army slowly trickled into the hidden base. They had managed to intercept and defeat 3 groups of 5 already. Though Maka had suspected each group were just low ranked foot soldiers.

The army, headed by Stein and Spirit, would arrive the following day. They travelled by airships that are currently residing in an unmarked area in Italy. Tomorrow the airships would launch again and bring them to the edge of Zagreb. From there each Death Scythe would lead a battalion into battle. Stein and Spirit would be leading the battalion that Maka and the rest of them would join.

However, since they were the leaders of their class and most of them had been there before, they would leave the main group after the castle was penetrated. They were to sneak around and look for anything that could help their cause. It was expected that Kid, Arachne and Asura would not partake in the battle head on. Stein seemed to believe that the 7 (or 8 if you count Ragnarok) of them could survive a battle with any of them if they fought hard enough.

"You know..." Tsubaki broke the silence of the night "we should probably get some sleep. I'm sure that the whole army is there. It seems they know we're coming tomorrow. I doubt we'll see any more small groups. Let's go back to the hotel."

"Tsubaki's right, guys. We should go. It's already past two and we need to be back here in about ten hours." Liz chimed in from her weapon form.

The rest nodded in agreement. Black*star jumped from the roof and landed on the ground. Tsubaki changed back into her human form. Patty scaled the wall downward with Liz. Crona also jumped down from the roof and had Ragnarok harden his blood so he wouldn't be injured. Soul released Maka's hand and jumped off the roof. Maka could hear the clang of metal that meant Soul had transformed in time. She looked around her. She still was inadept at scaling walls and getting off roofs. She fire escape that they used to get onto the roof and she went to walk down the stairs. As she was climbing down the ladder to the ground, the hinges at the top snapped.

The ladder, with Maka, plummeted toward the hard ground. Her back leading the fall, Maka shut her eyes and screamed. She braced herself for the pain in her back. She managed to kick the ladder away from her so it wouldn't fall on her too.

She landed in someone arm's instead.

Slightly stunned, Maka opened her eyes, even though she knew from the cologne who had caught her. _Soul. Thank you. _

"Death, Maka! Are you trying to give me a god damn heart attack?!"He shouted as he put her on her feet. "Be more careful!"

She narrowed her eyes at him, all thankfulness gone. "Stop over reacting. The fall wouldn't have killed me! And it's not like I forced the ladder to break!" She shouted right back at him.

Before any fighting broke out between the partners, Black*Star walked between the two of them. "Come on, let's go. Maka probably woke the neighbourhood with that girly shriek." He laughed as he avoided a Maka chop and sped toward the hotel with Maka hot on his trail with her dictionary.

Soul grumbled while walking beside Crona.

"You know you both over reacted there." Crona said awkwardly breaking off Soul's muttering.

"Whatever. She should be more careful." _Before she fucking manages to kill herself and my heart along the way._

"Soul, the ladder broke. She can't control metal." Crona stated simply. "Though she should also realize the fall would have hurt her."

_I don't like this new Crona. He's way too talkative. _Soul just continued mumbling to himself as they continued to the hotel. By the time they reached the hotel, they found Black*Star laying in front of the hotel with blood squirting from his head. _Man, she must be super pissed off. I hope she doesn't make me sleep on the floor. _Soul grimaced at the thought of sleeping on the floor beside the only queen bed in the room. _Maybe not because of the battle tomorrow. It would be totally un-cool if she did. _

As Tsubaki gathered the broken Black*Star in her arms, she kissed his forehead and started carrying him into the hotel. Crona, who was on the first floor, waved goodbye to the five of them as he walked down the hallway leading to his room. They had all decided if they rented rooms all at the same time, it would be suspicious to a spy of Arachne's, so they rented at different times of the day which caused the spread of their rooms.

After the five got into the elevator, Liz pressed floors 2, 6 and 7. Tsubaki and Black*Star were first to get off. She threw a goodbye over her shoulder as she rushed the still bleeding Black*Star out. After the doors closed Liz looked over at Soul.

"You know Soul. We could all die tomorrow." She stated simply.

"Yeah." Soul nodded in agreement. _She's right. What the hell am I going to do about Maka?_

She looked at him again and put her hand on his shoulder. "What we had wasn't very real, Soul. I know you never felt anything for me. And don't get me wrong, I don't hate you for it. But I know that you have something real with her. You should say something." She glanced into his red eyes. He looked back at her and felt an appreciation for the friend standing in front of him. Patty, who seemed to be lost in thought, was ignoring the duo's conversation. He looked away from her and toward his shoes. _There's a mud stain there. Fuck. _

"It could ruin everything." He muttered to her. "We might not be able to resonate together and fight."

"Soul, you know if that happens, the rest of us can handle it. You guys would be fine. What matters is that we might not be here a day from now. Are you sure you want to stay silent?" She spoke softly. "I wish I had said something to Kid and look where we are." Soul widened his eyes at her words. _She…and Kid? _

"If I had told him how much he meant to me, maybe he wouldn't have left or something." She removed her hand, embarrassed at her confession. "He had Maka and I know they were doing good. But… I always would complain at him and we would fight, like you and Maka just did. I shouldn't have been so rough on him."

He looked at her and saw the wetness that now broke from her eyes. He put his own hand on her shoulder. "Kid fucked up, Liz. It wasn't your fault. It wasn't anyone's fault. I'm sure we can convince him that he's wrong."

She sighed. This wasn't the way the conversation was supposed to go. "That's not what I'm saying, Soul. The point is-" The elevator doors opened and Patty walked out with Liz following. She stood outside the elevator and looked back at him.

"Don't leave the important things unsaid." And the doors closed, leaving Soul in silence.

Soul stood alone in the elevator with his thoughts. _She's right. No. She's wrong. She's right?_

The elevator began moving upward again and opened. He still had quite the walk to his and Maka's room. _Is it really worth it? Am I totally sure of my feelings? What if they aren't proper or something? What about her feelings? She just got broken by Kid! He fucked her and then insulted her by calling her a whore! I can't just shove my feelings onto her! What if she still loves him? But he hurt her…_ Soul stopped walking. _Wait a second. Maka only cried the one time. Since then she's trained harder and focuses more. Her attacks have become better and stronger. With my own practice that I do at home, I can take a lot more blows than before. She's increased her stealth and everything. I think Maka is far from being broken. It was like she wasn't really affected badly by Kid's betrayal. If anything, she's worked harder because of it! _This sudden realization led Soul to a whole new train of thoughts. _In fact, she's the strongest person I know. She's amazing when it comes to keeping it together when things are rough. She has the most adorable smile when she's shy, She has the cutest fucking voice and I can't help but to bow down to her requests. Her laugh is contagious and a truly wonderful thing to hear. She thinks she looks terrible; like a child. If I could I seriously would tell her everyday how fucking __**stunning**__ she is. She never backs down from anything, which some people think is a flaw but I find it amazing. She is the strongest, most frustrating, determined, confusing, bitch, loveable woman I have even met. She understands my bullshit past and sticks through all of my fucked up mistakes. She smiles at me even when I've done nothing right. She's the girl who makes my bad days better. I always want to tell her that since I've met her…I have become a better man. Even if she finds out about my practice…I'm sure… No. I'm positive she'll still accept me! _Soul, throwing all doubts to the wind sped toward his room and pulled out his key card.

He put it in the door and turned the handle. He held his breath as he entered his and Maka's room.

_Without me even realizing it, I've been in love with her since the start._

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The more reviews i get, the faster the chapter comes out! So review dudes!

Byes


	17. Everything in the Open

You obviously don't know the awesomeness that is below this text. Otherwise you'd already be reading down there! Review people!

-I'm here to enkindle courage

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**Everything in the Open**

He stepped through the door into the dark little hallway that led to the main part of the room. He could hear the tv blaring from where he was and he winced. If Maka was watching tv instead of reading, she was pissed at something. Whenever she couldn't concentrate on the book, she would fume in front of the tv and make herself even madder. He closed the door behind him and paused. _What am I even going to say? I can't just blurt it out. It'll scare her._ A flying dictionary, barley missing his head woke him from his thoughts. Maka _never_ misses on purpose. She was warning him about how utterly pissed she way. He hesitantly turned around to look at her, bracing for anything. What he saw surprised him, for a lack of better words.

Her pajama shirt was on; the left shoulder went past the proper resting place and left her shoulder bare. Her pants hung low on her hips and one leg was rolled up to the knee while the other hung around her ankles. She was breathing heavy and had her chest puffed out. Her hair was a mess. It was knotted and tangled. Obviously, she had been grabbing at it in a frustrated fit. Any eye make-up she had been wearing was forming dark lines around her eyes. With red eyes, she glared defiantly at him, extremely upset looking. He paused. _Why is she this upset? Did Black*Star said something rude to her? No, she wouldn't take it out on me. What's wrong?_ He cautiously approached her. He watched as she bit back tears that threatened to fall. They stood a meter from one another, staring at each other in silence.

Finally, Soul broke the quiet. "Why are you crying?"

"I am not crying because of you!" She screeched at him, stomping her foot. _Thought they only did that in movies. _

He took a moment to think about her words, "Maka, I never said it was because of me." He watched as her eyes widened and she started to stammer.

"Whatever, Soul! You're such a jackass!" She yelled at him. _How dare he act all cool! He was an asshole earlier to me in front of everyone! How can be so nonchalant about it! _"How could you yell at me like that in front of everyone! You made me look like an idiot and that I couldn't handle myself! It's not my fault that the ladder broke! Sorry that my fat ankles weighed the thing down too much and you had to catch me!" She turned away from him, about to storm away from him furiously, until he grabbed her wrist and spun her around, forcing her to look at him.

"Of course I had to catch you! What, I was just going to let you fall and kill yourself! That wouldn't be cool!" Soul felt himself getting angry.

" Cool this, cool that! Jesus, Soul. Is that all you think about?! How cool you look?! Do you really care about how people think of you that much? That's what I would call un-cool! You are such a child!" She shouted back at him. Her face was getting red from anger and from the yelling.

"I'm the child? Look whose freaking out over a little argument from earlier!" He spat right back at her.

"I'm only mad because you embarrassed me!" The conversation was getting louder with each reply. If the two kept up this pattern, soon the whole hotel would hear the conversation they were having right now.

"It wasn't to embarrass you! It was because I almost fucking lost you again, Maka! You put yourself into so many dangerous fucking situations and it breaks my heart every fucking time!" She was about to respond back when he cut her off. "You don't think before you do things and you almost get killed! That's _my _job! I'm supposed to die in your place; I'm supposed to protect you! When Kid attacked us, all you did was dodge his swords! You didn't even bother to use me! What, am I not good enough to protect you? Or are you so cocky that you think you don't need to block! Kid is much faster than you, Maka! He could have easily hit you if he wasn't playing around. He could fucking kill everyone! And I don't want that to happen! You always worry about _me! _Why can't I worry about you! Fuck, Maka! Don't you understand?" He shouted at her, red in the face.

Maka looked at him with newly calmed eyes. With a quiet voice, she spoke. "Soul, it wasn't cause you aren't good enough. It was because I knew it was hurting you to be hit by the blades. I can't lose you. And if it spares you pain for myself to get injured, it's worth it. Every single time, it's worth it." She put her free arm onto his chest, right above where his scar was.

They both recalled how much time they had spent in the hospital room while he was healing. He remembered waking up to seeing her crying by his side. She remembered all the days he had come close to dying in the hospital bed. In this moment, an unspoken conversation happened between the two partners. Neither wanted the other to get hurt and they were both willing to sacrifice themselves to protect their partner. Both saw how terrified the other was about losing them. They both began to understand just how much they meant to one another. Maka let her hand drop and let her head drop down to look at her feet.

He felt himself calm and released her arm. He stood in silence for a few moments at a loss for words. Sighing he said, "Maka, you know in the fairy tales, the guy protects the girl right?"

She looked up to him, with tears in her eyes. "But Soul, this is real life. Sometimes the hero's die in real life. I don't want you to be that hero."

He felt his tense face soften and he smiled down at her. _Was she always this much shorter than me? _"Maka, I would be that hero for you. Even if you don't want that. If you died… I don't know if I could live on."

She laughed and it rang hollow, filling the air in the room with a sickening feeling. "Please Soul. You could survive without me. You'd get over it and move on with a new partner that you could protect. You would have the same protectiveness over them as you did me. You would be fine."

He looked at her like she had just told him that she was an alien. He chuckled at her confused face. "Just h_ow can woman say_ completely illogical _stuff with such_ complete _confidence_? Maka, you idiot. Didn't you hear what I just said? I couldn't live on without you!"

She looked up at him with a slightly red face. "But why? I'm nothing special, Soul. I'm just the flat chested bookworm with fat ankles that somehow got an amazing partner like you."

He stepped closer to her and pushed stray hairs out of her face. He let his hand linger on her cheek. She closed her eyes and leant into his hand. "Maka, you have no idea how unbelievably special you are to me."

She looked up at him, with that expression that he could only describe as cute and innocent. "Why?"

He took a deep breath. _This is it. Thisisit. THISISIT. _ He felt his heart start to speed up and his palms get clammy. _Calm the fuck down, Soul. Calm down. Calmthefuckdown! _He took another shaky breath. "Just don't say anything till I'm done, kay? Not about anything. Promise." He looked at her and slightly smiled. She nodded back to him, agreeing.

"Maka, I'm not a mushy person. Hell, neither are you. We weren't made to be mushy people. We're a weapon and meister. A weapon isn't soft and delicate. But what I am is someone who cares about you. I know I'm an asshole, a serious asshole, sometimes. But the thing is… well, I love you. And before you ask, I don't know when it happened exactly. It wasn't a giant epiphany where I was all like, "Yeah, I love her!". It was quiet and under the surface for a long time. But now… now I guess it's out and in the open. I care about you more than I could ever have imagined. I, good old fashion love you; the love where I want to kiss you in the rain and hug you close, kinda love; the love that doesn't need words and reassurances every few moments. This love I feel for you can't even be put into words. The amount of feelings that I have for you will never be put to justice by any amount of words, phrases, explanations or reasons I can come up with. And there are so many things that I love about you, you can't even imagine.

I love that you are stubborn and pigheaded and will fight for what you think is right. I love that little crinkle about your nose when you look at me doing something stupid. I love that after I spend a day close to you, I can still smell you when I fall asleep at night. I love that you yell at me for doing something dangerous because it shows you care for me. I love when you forget to buy groceries and we have to go out to dinner together. I love when you fall asleep on my shoulder and lean into me. I love that even when things are shitty and tough; you still manage to smile at me. Even when everything is breaking down, you don't change who you are. I want you to know that you are the last person I want to talk to before I go to sleep because I can fall asleep remembering your voice.

All I can think about lately is just how naturally, simply, effortlessly beautiful you are. Before you say anything, what I mean when I say you is I mean my best friend, Maka- Maka Albarn, top of the class, never lost a sparring match since she turned twelve, the girl who likes the lamest music and secretly indulges in an amount of chocolate that would kill a normal person when she thinks I'm not watching. The girl who loves her coffee with an ungodly amount of sugar, who likes her ice cream melty and soft, who likes to stare down anyone who dares talk back to her, who loves to stretch out on her bed and who gives out a cute sigh of relief as she does so.

Maka Albarn, the girl who has an awkward kind of charm, the type that's annoying and adorable at the same time. You have this type of pull that lures a person in slowly and quietly and then all of sudden you're thrown into the vortex that makes her up. The girl who isn't an outright beauty that makes guy's gawk and trip over themselves. The girl who isn't someone with a perfect personality that shines above everything. The girl who doesn't have the body that's exposed on a playboy cover, because she is something so much better than that. But she is the girl who has a laugh that's infectious and a smile that can brighten a room. She's the girl who has this dorky, nerdy, geeky, absolutely charming sense of humor that includes her messing up every punch line ever and being unable to even tell a whole joke because she's already laughing too hard." He stepped closer to her and looked intensely into her eyes. "She has the skin that manages to stay pale and soft despite the harsh climate; skin that, when I touch it, gives me a reaction that causes my heart to race and my body to forget how to breathe. Then there are her amazing jade colored eyes that I get lost in by mistake. The eyes that she thinks are too big on her face and color that is much too odd. There the kind of eyes that are a deep green, which draws a person in and memorizes them. The girl who is standing right here, in front of me, who I love.

You can't even imagine the countless nights I spent preparing to tell you this. I've been searching hard in those romance novels you're infatuated with and films that girls love watching that make them cry because of how bloody mushy they are to come up with one great and amazing poetic phrase that would eloquently sum up all of the feelings I have for you and how much you mean to me. But nothing, not one thing I've ever seen or heard can sum up or express what I want to say to you. I'm not great with words and books and things like feelings, thats all you, Maka. You're amazing at that. But here I am blabbering on and on like an idiot because I just want to get my point across. It wasn't supposed to happen like this. I wanted to tell you when the Kishin was gone and when we finally didn't have to fight for our lives every second of the day. I wanted to take you somewhere, anywhere, that you found amazing and tell you. I wanted to do a lot of things. But here I am, with some shabby looking clothes on and some messy hair in a cheap hotel that probably has bed bugs. But I couldn't hold it in knowing this could be the last time I see you alive. And this isn't because I'm lonely or because it's the eve of the battle of our lives. I came in here tonight to tell you this because when you finally realize you want to spend the rest of your life, no matter how short it is, with somebody, you want that life to start as soon as possible. Maka," he stepped and took her hands in his, "If I know one thing in this world, it's that you are the most stubborn, crazy, annoying, agitating, endearing, wonderful, hilarious, cute, intelligent, amazing girl I have ever met. I love you."

Before she could say anything, he leaned down and took his lips to hers. Now, for a kiss to be really good, you want it to mean something; something full of tenderness, roughness, wanting, longing, love, annoyance, tolerance, intolerance and a million things all at the same time. You want it to be with someone you can't get out of your head, so that when your lips finally touch you feel it everywhere. You can feel the tingle down your back and the weakening of your legs. A kiss so hot and so deep you never want to come up for air. You can't cheat your first kiss with this special person. Cause when you find that right person, it's everything. It was amazing, simple, complex, passionate, calm, and fiery all at once.

When they pulled away, Maka looked up at Soul. He put on a confident face, but she could see the nervousness behind his eyes. She smiled brightly at him. "That was a very long speech for someone who claims to be bad at words." She laughed and he blushed. Thinking she was trying to let him down easy, Soul began to pull away from her. Quickly, she grasped his waist and hugged herself to his chest. "I've been wanting to say this to you for a long time too, Soul." She looked up into his eyes.

"I love you, too." And with that, she pulled him in for another kiss.

They spent the rest of the night caressing each other and learning every single curve and line of the other's body. Soul eventually found a ticklish spot behind Maka's knee that he exploited whenever he could. Maka found a spot of Soul's neck that cause him to shiver. She enjoyed using that during their later activities. By the end of the night, they laid tangled in a heated and sweaty heap on their bed. Soul, laying on his back with one arm around Maka and the other behind his head, smiled. _I should have spoken up earlier. Why was I worried before? _Maka nuzzled into the man she loved and let out a content sigh. They let this bubble of happiness consume them. They ignored the feelings of dread for the battle. They fell asleep with smiles on their faces and hope in their hearts.

Upon waking in the morning, each took a shower and had a light breakfast. It was still dark out when they finished. They stood in silence, both unsure of what to say to comfort the other for the battle. Maka had to deal with her demons with Kid while Soul had to deal with his own demons. They still had an hour before they were to meet the rest of the group.

_I have to tell her. If I just pull it out in the middle of battle, she may be so shocked she won't use me. I need to tell her now._ "Maka?" He broke their half-hour silence. She looked over at him. He was unable to read the emotion in her eyes. Fear? Dread? Maybe hope? Love?

He shook his head, brushing off the thoughts. "Maka, there is something I have to tell you. Remember when you talked to me about all the time I spent in my room back home?" He hesitated after she nodded 'yes' at him.

"You probably already know this, but I lied to you. But… but the time I spent in my room was probably the most important thing I could do. I would have told you earlier, but you would have stopped me." He hesitated again.

"Soul." She walked to him and pulled at his hand, grasping it in hers. She smiled slightly at him. "You can tell me."

He closed his eyes and sighed. "Maka… this is going to be hard. But… I know where weapons came from."

"Yeah, Lord Death said that Arachne made them." She looked at him confused.

"Yeah, but he never said what exactly she made us from, Maka. The demon in the black room told me. And before you say anything, this has nothing to do with the black blood. He's just helped me unlock something that was in my blood from my family."

"Your family? What do they have to do with this? You're the very first member of your family to be a weapon." She looked at him and lifted an eyebrow.

He paused again. _This is harder than I thought. _"Maka," He said quietly. "The Evan's family were the very first humans to be affected by Archne. My family were the very first weapons."

Maka paused taking in the information. "Well, okay. That's not too bad."

He sighed. "Maka, this isn't everything. We also chose her side after she left Lord Death. Because we did this, she transfused something into our genes that made us even stronger. But after she was defeated, Lord Death decided to wipe out the gene from showing for the next few hundred years because of our betrayal and how immensely powerful we could become." He looked away from her. Suddenly, he didn't want to go on. He didn't want her to judge him.

"What was transfused into you, Soul?" He wouldn't meet her gaze.

"Weapons were formed from one witch child each. My family members had… they had over a hundred witches transfused into them each. We had enough witch blood in our genes that…" He paused again.

"Soul please just say it."

"I… I don't know how to explain how it happened, Maka. But the demon unlocked this gene inside me. I've spent the last few weeks learning how to use it."

"It being…?"

"Maka, I'm what the demon called a warlock. I can cast magic, just like witches. And just like witches, I have the potential to fall to darkness and to madness."

She stumbled away from him with wide eyes. He looked back at her desperately as he felt their soul connection waiver.

_Soul…is a witch?_

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Yeah. I expect a few reviews before the next chapter!

Byes.


	18. Time for the Rain

SOOOOOOOOOOOOOO SORRY FOR LATE POST! D: D:

-Im here to enkindle courage.

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**Time for the Rain**

Soul stood still as he watched him partner sit across from him. After he dropped the bomb on her, she had gone to sit down at the table. She sat quietly with her hands folded. Quietly, she peeled an orange. The slower she chewed, the more Soul became edgy. She didn't freak out like he had expected; she didn't even _say _anything. He watched as she calmly ate with a focused look embedded on her face. Eventually, after what seemed like hours, she finished her snack and rose to wash her hands. Soul desperately waited for her to say something to him. He watched her every move.

It came like a giant wave, washing over him and filling him with relief.

"Okay."

It was so quiet; he almost missed his favorite sound. As she washed her hands, their soul connection opened to a new feeling. It felt like acceptance; felt like the most important kind of trust. She accepted him for who he was and what he could become. Seconds later, Soul had crossed the kitchen and scooped her into his arms. Peppering her face with kisses, he embraced her connection with his whole soul. Their link blended and molded into they were almost one. No secrets held them apart; no fears; no barriers.

Maka sensed it before the knock came. She parted from Soul with a small smile. She didn't have to say anything. She trusted him and that's all he needed from her. She would save him from the darkness if need be. She went to the door just as Black*Star was about to knock. Everyone stood outside. Faces were calm and mellow. Without a word she turned to Soul. He took a last look around the room and took a deep breath.

This would be their last calm moment.

The made their way to the elevator and silence filled the air. No one wanted to fill the air with meaningless words. The seven of them would be the ones that would take the most dangerous actions; the deadliest. If anyone would die, it would be them.

It's a calm thing; to accept ones demise. Each one had prepared for the battle in their own ways. They knew this could very well be their last morning, their last sunrise. This would grant them the ability to fight harder than the average soldier. Holding back for one's safety hindered normal people but they were prepared to die for their comrades; their friends.

But lets make something very clear. They weren't going to roll over and die. Not even close. Every single mind was determined to take down as many as those bastards are they could before accepting defeat. They would work together to try to defeat the menace. They would work through injuries and pain and fear. They would hold the line. They were the line.

Maka, Soul, Black*Star, Tsubaki, Patty, Liz, Crona and Ragnorak stood in the elevator. They all looked around at their friends. Black*Star and Soul exchanged a handshake and bro-hug. The girls had a group hug. Patty crushed Crona with a hug as well. They had been through a lot; if you thought about it. Surprisingly, they didn't all become friends that long ago. They only met Patty and Liz a year ago and Crona only became their friend a few months ago. It was amazing how much could change in a few short weeks. Maka almost laughed at the fact that her most important thought last year was trying to impress the mother that hadn't visited her in three years. Even Black*Star could see how immature he had been last year.

The exited the elevator. Whispers were exchanged when Soul grabbed Maka's hand. Maka blushed when Black*Star high fived Soul. Soul rolled his eyes when all the girls squealed. This seemed to break the shroud of silence that covered them. Soon, they were laughing and talking again. They talked like they were sure they would live to see tomorrow. The girls chatted about new clothing stores that were opening up while the boys talked about video games they had been hearing about. Crona bounced from both conversations, having input on both.

"Did you hear about that new Mario game?"

"Oh my death! I can't wait to go shopping at La La Lights. It sounds amazing!"

"Shut up, Soul! Star Death is a much better game than Death Star!"

"Have you seen these shoes that I bought last week? They're so comfy!"

"Shit! I forgot my book in the hotel!"

A groan came from the group.

As the group came closer and closer to the rendezvous point, the less everyone had to say. The calmness and acceptance washed over them again. They were walking to their deaths; but they would walk proudly and with no regret. They passed the trees and entered the area right before the field, where hundreds of their fellows and teachers were preparing. They could even see people from other Meister-Weapon schools. Everyone chatted amongst themselves, obviously not knowing the danger waiting for them. However, what they did notice were the scout team approaching. When they saw Maka and the group, everyone stood and formed lines to watch them walk by. Soon, the group was walking down an aisle as they passed people they knew and people they didn't.

The army had been informed that the scouts would be the infiltration team; that they would be the heavy hitters; that they would be partaking in a suicide mission. To honor them, the students bowed their heads as they walked by. They passed by Ox and people from their class and stopped. Hugs were exchanged and tears were shed from the class. Some called for them not to go, some prayed for their safety and some simply nodded in respect to their dedication. Ox called Maka to him.

"Maka!" Ox waved at her with a smile.

She smiled in return as they shook hands. "Ox."

He pulled his hand back from her and put it to his side. "You better come back, I need someone to beat in class." He crossed his arms and looked smugly at her. She knew this was his way of telling her to be safe.

"Thought you be glad to get a chance at first place again. I bet you're gunna try to show these rookies up, eh?" Maka crossed her arms as well as she looked at the fresh recruits.

"You know it. Someone's gotta do it right." She smiled at him and he did as well. With a nod, she followed after the group. Ox broke rank and walked to the middle of the asile.

"You better give those bastards hell!" He shouted to the group. Each turned around as Black*Star answered.

"We'll take down them all! How else will I become a God?!" He thrusted his fist into the air. He looked to the others beside him and they did the same.

Ox, seeing this symbol, threw his into the air as well. The surrounding people began to follow their example. Soon, every person for as far as the eye could see had their first in the air. "For friendship!" The group shouted. Everyone cheered as the group walked down the row. Hand shakes and pats on the back were given to all. Each couple held hands with Crona taking up the back. Girls whistled at his new look and some guys patted him on the back for 'finally not being a pussy." Crona just laughed with them all.

They soon neared the area where Stein was with Spirit and the other Death scythes. They were going over the last of the plans. Each Death Scythe and their partners would lead a battalion in a sector during the battle. In each battalion, students had been elected to be the next-in-line leaders in case the Death Scythe was killed in action. Stein eventually noticed the group's arrival. He turned to look at the group. Spirit was speaking to another death scythe about something.

"Well, by the cheering, I figured you all were here. You ready?" He asked as he took a puff from his smoke.

Each of them looked at each other. Soul answered for them. "Fuck yes." He walked up to the battle plan table and the others followed. Stein began to speak out the plan that each already knew by heart. They could fight with their respective battalion, then when breaching the castle, they would meet at the second rendezvous point to continue into the final chamber together.

While the Death Scythe's talked amongst themselves. Spirit noticed Maka but held himself back after seeing her. Before he had saw her he had every intention of crying out and grovelling at her feet not to go. But something was different about the group of friends. He looked as Stein and the kids…and the men and woman talked to one another.

Spirit looked over his daughter and her friends. These were no longer children who were scared of battles and death. These were warriors and survivors. Spirit began to realize that these young adults had seen more than they should have in their time. And that they were also willing to give their lives at a time that no one should. At this realization, Spirit suddenly felt a deep respect for his daughter and her friends. They had taken a role that had been thrusted upon them with open arms and smiles. They were willing to do the necessary. Spirit himself was unsure whether he could have done so at that age. He moved to her when she finished making plans with Stein.

Maka saw her father coming and braced for a tear fest telling her she was forbidden to go to the battle, she was surprised however. He came to her calmly and put his hand on her shoulder. He looked down at his not-so-little girl and gave a small smile. In return, she smiled back.

"I'm proud of you, Maka." He spoke softly to her, so no one would hear.

"Thanks, Dad." She answered just as softly.

"I would tell you that you don't have to do this, but I'm sure you've already made up your mind on this."

"You're right."

He smiled at her quick response. _She's so much like her mother. _"Be safe. Okay? If you don't come back, who am I going to go screaming after while crying?" He gave her a small laugh and chuckled.

She smiled and chuckled with him. She pushed the tears that were forming away. "I'm sure you'd find someone else to annoy." She gave him a small shove. Sprit was about to speak again when Soul cut in.

"Maka? It's time to get into position. We should head out." Soul nodded to Spirit and shook his hand. "I'll keep her safe."

"I appreciate that, Soul." Soul looked back to Maka and nodded. She looked to her father and smiled at him.

Spirit shoved his hands into his pockets and watched her walk away from him. Just as he was about to turn around, he heard her voice. "I love you! You better be safe, bastard!" She called out, fake angry, smiling at him the whole time.

He raised his hand in response to her, then she turned and ran away from him, after the group.

Spirit didn't stop his tears from coming. He covered his face with his left hand. Stein came to him and put his hand on his shoulder.

"It's a terrible day for rain." He said simply to his friend and partner.

Spirit looked up to the bright sky with tears going down his face. "Yeah. It is."

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	19. The Beginning of the End

Okay guys. I have some serious shitttt to tell you! D: So I went on vacation like 3 days after i last posted. And i had the next 3 chapters all written and ready to go. But on our way home, (a week later), we stopped to eat somewhere and walk around. During this time someone broke into our car and stole all of our stuff. Including my laptop. So the chapters were gone. But what made matters worse is that i didn't actually know my password to this site or to my email because they were always logged in. (And after 3 years, you kinda forget passwords lol) So yesterday, i was bumming around my room when I came across an old journal that i wrote rough drafts for my original story and it had my password in it! :D So i logged in and quickly wrote a chapter. But anyways, I'm really sorry guys. Real life kinda drops the ball sometimes, but i hope you can forgive me. :) So heres a new chapter!

-Im here to enkindle courage :)

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**The Beginning of the End**

Cobwebs filled the chamber she was in, which made her all the more comfortable. The eeriness of the creaks and groans from the long rotten wood and forgotten stair wells was like music to her ears. To her right sat the darkened and temperamental man that could potential destroy the world. Fortunately she had nothing to fear from him, for he loved her. Well, loved her in his own perverted way. She would twist his feelings for her long before the end. Over and over again she would take advantage of that soul. Regret for this did not cross her mind for a second.

Right before the entrance into the chamber, the dust began to shift and move. Someone was approaching. Lazily, she moved her delicate eyes toward the doorway, fully prepared to kill anyone who broke this calmness before the battle with her ex-love. Ah yes, the battle. How fighting it would be. A man who has love for her will fight with the kin of the one she loved.

Oh course she knew of the battle. How couldn't she? The schools sloppy effort of forming _right in front of her doorstep _wasn't even the first clue to their approach, but it was their loudest. _It's strange really, that the bastard didn't even try to reconcile with his son. Instead he plans to bury him alive with the rest of us. Maybe once they have been defeated here, he will take the fight to his father. _The wind around the dust grew stronger as the individual approached. _Confident stepping and an eased stride. Speak of the devil…_

Kid came in; the _new _Kid. She would be surprised if his pathetic and weak willed friends would even recognize the man that was walking toward her. They didn't even call him "Kid" anymore. He seemed to like "Death" better. _Perhaps,_ Arachne mused, _to mock his embarrassment for a shinigami father._ In the months that he had worked with Arachne and the Kishin, he changed into a formidable leader and warrior; even more than he had been before. Long forgotten where his 'fancy' and 'boyish' clothing. He wore armour now. Still long sleeved and black, it's metal shone even in this dim lighting. He trained with his own special group of soldiers that taught him more of speed and strength to add along to his cunning. These men were powerful and mighty. They would be essential in the coming battle. Their loyalties, however, did not lie with Arachne who terrified them for fun nor the Kishin who abused them; they would fight for Kid and no one else.

He walked in, with his super soldiers behind him. They formed a line behind him as he approached the "thrones" of Arachne and Asura. She could feel the anger toward Kid spew from the depths of the Kishin's heart. He _hated _another man even daring to address Arachne. She hide her smile the best she could.

Death cleared his throat, impatiently. He leaned on his left leg, hand draped lazily over his long sword. "They will attack soon. Why are you sitting so quietly in these chairs?" He spat angrily.

Arachne narrowed her eyes. "Do not seem to know our thoughts, boy. And these are our thones, not some simply wooden chair."

Death mockingly bowed. "Of course my lady. But I must ask. If these are truly mighty thrones, why are they in a dark and remote part of this…'castle'?" He smirked as Arachne didn't reply. She easily was flustered and angered by the boy. And despite the fact that she should be _his _master, she knew that without the Kishin, she would be no match for Death. His sword work and speed greatly outmatched anything she could use against him. With another mock bow, Death left the room, with his soldiers stomping noisily behind him.

She turned to the Kishin. "My love, are you prepared to fight these silly children again."

The glowering figure slowly turned to her. He rasped out," I am always prepared to fight for you."

Arachne turned again to face the front. "Good."

It would begin soon. Very soon.

* * *

Maka and Soul walked toward Team Omega. They would lead this squadron until they broke through the walls of the castle. Then their real mission would begin. But for now, they needed to focus on the present. Maka looked around her. None of the faces were from the academy. Apparently, these were the other 'Maka and Soul' 's from the other academies; tops of their classes and the most advanced fighters. These were the heavy hitters and they would be leading the charge.

Soul approached a group from the African region. Two men were partners; both towering a head over Soul. "Hey." He stuck out his hands. The two African men looked down to see a white haired boy greeting them. At first, they thought he was just a boy who had wondered over, but realized that this was the white haired slayer they had heard about.

"Greetings." The word came out with more African in it than English. Soul nodded to the big men in his understanding of the word. Trying again, the man spoke. "You will be leader for us?" Better this time. Legible.

"Yeah. Maka and I have fought these guys before. We know their weaknesses and strengths. If you could call over the others for us while we finalize plans, that would be great." Soul offered a half smile.

The big man nodded. "I will. Name is Gamba. This is," He pointed toward his partner, "Kondo. We are spear and meister. We shall inform the others." They nodded to each other and split up to talk to other groups.

Soul wandered back toward Maka. She was at a table in a tent, going over the battle strategy, making sure there were no holes in the plan. Soul could see the worriedness begin to show on her face. Quickly, he made his way over to her. "Might not wanna let them all see that face."

Her eyes snapped up to him, obviously surprised her was there. "What face?"

"The worry face, Maka. Everything is going to be fine. Lord Death himself and his best strategists came up with these plans. We'll be fine. All we have to do is order everyone around and make sure we do it right." He pulled her hands off the table and held onto them. Looking into her eyes, he smiled. "We'll be okay."

She smiled at him. "Yeah. We'll do great. We're Maka and Soul. Nothing is gunna stop us." She smiled.

He pulled her into him for a hug. "It's Soul and Maka, by the way."

"Shut up, Soul. Just hug me."

"Okay."

* * *

Each team prepared in their own way. No one said goodbye. Thoughts like that wouldn't be spoken out loud right now. Eventually, the flare went up. It was time to move. Maka assembled their crew and stood in front of them with her partner.

"So, we're first. I'm not going to fill the air with meaningless words. So I'll keep this short." She took Souls hand and he transformed into a Scythe. "Right now, we fight for ourselves and our comrades. They fight to destroy everything that we love. So let's give them hell for even thinking about hurting our loved ones. Let's move out." With that, she turned her back on them and began to jog toward the stairwell that she had gone down months before.

The stairwell where Kid almost killed her. Where he broke her heart. Where Patty and Liz were almost killed. She hated this stairwell for the bad memories. But she would fight past them. She would fight for every single person who had affected her life in anyway; her mother, her father, Soul, her neighbours, her classmates, the lady at the super market who gives out free samples, everyone. They all have the right to live in peace. And if that meant she would have to fight for it, so be it.

_And as if I'm going down without a fight. _

She was willing to die for them; in a heartbeat, she would throw herself into the fire to save them because she knew that they would do the same for her. They loved her with all their might. And she would thank them for it.

The rain began. Softly at first. But soon it began to pour, making the grounds slippery as she approached the stairwell. Breaking through the seal that hid the area, Maka saw her enemies. They had been waiting right behind the barrier. She paused only for a moment. _Why didn't they attack us while they had the chance?_

She charged in screaming. Her fellow members of Team Omega following her, giving out their own battle cries from their respective academies. It was time to raise some hell. She sped toward her first opponent, slicing him in half with Soul. The blood splattered onto her coat, but the rain soon wiped it away. She didn't think about the fact the man was probably forced into fighting. She didn't think about the fact she had to kill another human. This was a battle. Regret was for later.

"Team Omega! Make your way through the heart of the horde! We need to get to those stairs!" She was greeted with cries of agreement. Satisfied she continued forward into the battle, swinging around her death blade.

Soul floated in his dark abyss as he listened and felt the movements of his meister. She wouldn't need his thoughts or voice right now. She knew what she was doing. And he had a certain demon to speak with. Floating down toward the door to the piano room, Soul took a deep breath. He pushed open the doors and found himself fully clothed. The demon was lounging on a couch. He turned to watch Soul approach.

"So you told her?"

"I did."

"And she still is with you?"

"Yes."

"Maka is truly remarkable. She stayed with you, despite the fact that you could very well fall into evil with your powers."

"Maka is more than remarkable! She's amazing and—"

"Yes, yes. You love her and blah blah. Now, let's get down to business." The red demon stood from his spot on the couch and made his way over to the piano. "You are sure you can activate it easily now, if not, Maka could die in battle if it takes too long."

"Yes. We have been training for months on being able to activate it."

There was a silence in the room. Even the jazz music seemed to disappear. Soul spoke softly. "I'm scared."

"That is what it means to be human." The demon sadly spoke. "Feeling emotions like fear and anger and happiness is what makes your species excel and do things that should be impossible. You didn't have wings, so you made an airplane. You couldn't eat raw meat, so you learned how to cook. Many times I have watched your species overcome obstacles that I deemed impossible." He turned to Soul. "You will overcome this one as well."

Another silence filled the air.

"But what about Maka when she faces Kid? Do you think she will be able to hold it together?" Soul spoke again, desperate for a reassuring answer.

The demon stopped for a few moments and thought. He then spoke softly, more to himself than anything. " I think there is more to this story than he has let us know."

"What do you mean?"

"Hmm? Oh nothing. Just a random thought floating about in my head."

_Just a thought. _

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Once again, I'm super sorry about everything. But please review and let me know that you guys are still here 3


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